 |
|
     |
|
 |
Growing Furor Over Empty Top Seats at FDA, NIH
The chorus chiding the Bush administration for its failure to fill key leadership positions at federal health agencies is growing.
One apparent catalyst is HHS secretary Tommy Thompson's Jan. 8 statement that the post of FDA commissioner could be filled "real soon" and that three finalists are under White House review. Although Thompson didn't name any names, Alastair Wood, professor of medicine and assistant vice chancellor at Vanderbilt University, is reported to be the front-runner.
Thompson's comments were followed by back-to-back editorials in The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post. Both drew attention to the negative impact of vacant top-level positions at the Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health. In the LA Times' words, "The FDA and NIH may seem like obscure, easily ignored federal agencies, but their social importance is growing and they need strong leadership to be strong watchdogs of the national health."
Noting that highly qualified candidates for both positions are waiting in the wings, the LA Times echoed the popular sentiment that Anthony Fauci, currently director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is the best candidate for the vacant NIH slot. It exhorted President Bush to honor Fauci's deisre for some protected time to escape politics and do research, a condition he is reported to have placed on his acceptance of the already-offered position. The Times further urged President Bush to nominate Wood for the post of FDA commissioner.
The Washington Post reported on concern over the top vacancies at FDA and NIH, as well as the many top positions at HHS currently filled by temporary directors and the soon-to-be-vacant office of the Surgeon General. The situation, the Post reported, may cause key decisions to be delayed or made without input from the scientific community. Among the many voices of concern they cited was that of Mohammad Akhter, executive director of the American Public Health Association, who commented, "Without good leaders, the agencies will continue to tread water without making any progress."
Among the many individuals who have come forward to press for action is former Vice President Al Gore. Noting that the FDA can't regulate biotechnology breakthroughs without effective leadership, Gore joined The LA Times in endorsing Alastair Wood as a potential nominee for the agency's top position.
In the meantime, members of the health behavior research community need to stay involved, or get involved, in the process of finding permanent appointees who can provide leadership in promoting and protecting the public's health.
|
|
|||||
 |
|||||||
