Stephen Hahn confirmed as next FDA head

The Senate confirmed Dr. Stephen Hahn as the next FDA commissioner yesterday in a 72-18 vote. Hahn, who has no previous political experience, will leave his post as chief medical executive at Houston’s MD Anderson Medical Center. The Senate’s vote margins make Hahn one of the most contentious picks to lead the FDA in recent history: Scott Gottlieb was confirmed in 2017 with a 57-42 vote, but the two previous chiefs were confirmed with overwhelming support. Hahn is taking over from Ned Sharpless, who had served as acting commissioner after Gottlieb resigned earlier this year. Sharpless will return to his job leading the National Cancer Institute. Many medical groups, including the American Association for Cancer Research, applauded Hahn’s confirmation, while some of the same groups and four former FDA commissioners had previously expressed support for Sharpless to stay on.