{"id":1135,"date":"2026-05-16T04:39:55","date_gmt":"2026-05-16T04:39:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/?p=1135"},"modified":"2026-05-16T04:39:56","modified_gmt":"2026-05-16T04:39:56","slug":"fda-turmoil-deepens-as-top-drug-chief-departs-claiming-she-was-fired","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/?p=1135","title":{"rendered":"FDA turmoil deepens as top drug chief departs claiming she was fired"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"border-color:var(--article-border);background-color:var(--article-inner-background)\" class=\"dcr-wqti5a\">\n<div class=\"dcr-2zxs1v\">\n<div style=\"--grid-area:media\" data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tr9ye5\">\n<figure id=\"ea5aee45-92a6-4e1f-a2d2-42cc83cf5f50\" class=\"dcr-142siv7\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Dr Tracy Beth Hoeg\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/60e717e523062b6beffa7e217acc16121bcbf4b9\/0_0_3936_2632\/master\/3936.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"310.9451219512195\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><span class=\"dcr-v822l1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-gup2gr\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fntg6k\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-1xgwz8b\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1os51wo\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Dr Tracy Beth Hoeg says she was fired from the FDA.<\/span> Photograph: Mike Stewart\/AP<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"ea5aee45-92a6-4e1f-a2d2-42cc83cf5f50\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-n4pnam\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1hdkqum\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Dr Tracy Beth Hoeg says she was fired from the FDA.<\/span> Photograph: Mike Stewart\/AP<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:border\" data-gu-name=\"border\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:headline\" data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1aqe7zu\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-1k1a1x\">FDA turmoil deepens as top drug chief departs claiming she was fired<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:standfirst\" data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-15in7js\">\n<p>Dr Tracy Beth H\u00f8eg, the Food and Drug Administration\u2019s top drug regulator, says she was fired from agency after declining to resign<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:body\" data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-kn9unn\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1a4fred\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-ydnaza\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-1c9t5u6\">\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">In a major shake-up at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), top regulators left on Friday \u2013 including Tracy Beth H\u00f8eg, the acting drug chief, who says she was fired, and Katherine Szarama, the acting vaccines chief who has only been in the position for days. Jim Traficant, the chief of staff, has also been ousted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The FDA now has no permanent commissioner or deputy commissioner and no permanent leaders of two major centers, after the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/12\/marty-makary-fda-trump-administration\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">resignation of Marty Makary<\/a> on Tuesday and other high-profile departures.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">According to an email obtained by the Guardian, FDA staff only received official word on Friday afternoon that Makary is leaving and Kyle Diamantas, previously the top food regulator, will <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/13\/kyle-diamantas-new-acting-fda-commissioner\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">temporarily lead the agency as acting commissioner<\/a> \u2013 though they had clues from President Donald Trump\u2019s social media posts and the reported <a href=\"https:\/\/insidemedicine.substack.com\/p\/exclusive-heres-how-fda-employees\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">removal of Makary\u2019s photo<\/a> from the lobby of FDA headquarters.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"f92572e9-8cff-43ef-9be6-5884e43d2393\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-47fhrn\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-3 | 3\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1kyw41h\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-1bg5532\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/13\/kyle-diamantas-new-acting-fda-commissioner\" class=\"dcr-1m887w9\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-ut4tvs\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1h5b6rb\">\n<div class=\"dcr-169d7yv\">What to know about Kyle Diamantas, the new acting FDA commissioner<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-eurq8n\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fkf7vq\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The departure of Makary and several key allies at FDA signifies a potential new direction for the agency, which has been rocked by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/09\/marty-makary-fda-food-drug-administration\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">controversial decisions<\/a> on vaccines, rare disease medications, staff layoffs and low morale.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cI was fired,\u201d H\u00f8eg <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/tracybethhoeg\/status\/2055438472379306017\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">wrote on X<\/a> on Friday night, noting that she had served exactly six months as head of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) \u2013 though she didn\u2019t mention she served as acting, not permanent, director of the center.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">H\u00f8eg <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/05\/15\/us\/politics\/fda-drug-regulator-fired.html\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">told the New York Times<\/a> and other outlets that she was fired from the agency after she declined to resign.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Before overseeing the nation\u2019s drug regulation center, H\u00f8eg was an adviser to Makary, and she focused on gathering reports of adverse vaccine reactions and attempting to align the US childhood vaccine schedule with that of Denmark, where H\u00f8eg is a dual citizen and received her degree in epidemiology. A sports medicine physician, H\u00f8eg rose to national prominence by casting doubt on the safety and necessity of Covid vaccines, and she had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2025\/dec\/31\/tracy-beth-hoeg-fda-vaccines\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">no apparent experience<\/a> in drug regulation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">H\u00f8eg was the fifth leader of the center in a year, after high-profile departures of leaders such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2025\/nov\/03\/fda-official-resigns-george-tidmarsh\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">George Tidmarsh<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/science\/2025\/dec\/03\/fda-drug-chief-signals-retires-pazdur\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Richard Pazdur<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Michael Davis, CDER\u2019s deputy director, will now serve as acting director, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statnews.com\/2026\/05\/15\/fda-leadership-vacuum-tracy-beth-hoeg-resigns-drug-center-post\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">according to<\/a> STAT News.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Szarama took over as acting director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) after the departure of another highly controversial figure, Vinay Prasad, last month. But Szarama, who was in the position for 10 days and had not even had time to update her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/katherine-b-szarama-phd-627a172b\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">LinkedIn pro<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/katherine-b-szarama-phd-627a172b\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">file<\/a>, is also reportedly leaving the agency. Karim Mikhail, who was CEO of the pharmaceutical company Amarin before joining FDA last year, will now temporarily head the center.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Traficant, who was chair and CEO of Citadel Sciences before joining the FDA last March, is also out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-qxqnsy\"><span class=\"dcr-1rq3vad\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1dzx48f\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-1rrvs2w\">\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US news<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/trump-administration\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Trump administration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/society\/health\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Health<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-nu129i\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=FDA%20turmoil%20deepens%20as%20top%20drug%20chief%20departs%20claiming%20she%20was%20fired&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/16\/fda-tracy-beth-hoeg-drug-chief-departs?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-125qj9d\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-zhx6xs\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fmay%2F16%2Ffda-tracy-beth-hoeg-drug-chief-departs&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/may\/16\/fda-tracy-beth-hoeg-drug-chief-departs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-14rjinq\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:right-column\" data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1h2hraq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tn16h9\">\n<section class=\"dcr-1hko8ef\"><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dr Tracy Beth Hoeg says she was fired from the FDA. Photograph: Mike Stewart\/AP View image in fullscreen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1136,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1135","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1135"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1137,"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135\/revisions\/1137"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1135"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}