Trump Picks Makary To Head Vaccines, Drugs Agency FDA

Ready to hit the ground running in January ahead of his second coming as the prize occupant of the White House, United States (US) President-elect Donald Trump has picked Marty Makary, a Johns Hopkins surgeon and frequent Fox News guest, to lead the Food and Drug Administration.

Trump announced his decision on Friday that Makary will be leading the roughly $7 billion Agency charged with making decisions touching the daily lives of every American.

He said in a statement that the “FDA has lost the trust of Americans, and has lost sight of its primary goal as a regulator”, adding; “The Agency needs Dr. Marty Makary, a Highly Respected Johns Hopkins Surgical Oncologist and Health Policy Expert, to course-correct and refocus the Agency.”

The FDA approves vaccines, drugs, and devices; ensures the safety of the nation’s food supply; and regulates tobacco products, and is expected to be in Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s crosshairs if he is confirmed to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the FDA.

Makary has a long-standing relationship with former Trump officials, having worked with them on health policy issues during Trump’s first administration, including advising on efforts to increase healthcare price transparency.

He also has forged a bond with Kennedy, supporting his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda to address chronic disease and childhood illness and joining him in criticizing the medical establishment.

Makary’s ties with Trump officials and Kennedy helped him emerge as the consensus pick for FDA commissioner, according to four people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe confidential conversations during the selection process.

Kennedy, tapped by Trump last week to lead HHS, has pushed for health agency nominees with few industry ties and limited government experience, casting Makary as a fellow reformer, according to the people with knowledge of the process. Makary, a specialist in gastrointestinal surgery, has never held a senior government role.

Other Trump allies point to Makary’s experience working with GOP policymakers as evidence he can be a bridge between Republicans and the biomedical industry that the FDA regulates.

The frequent TV pundit also possesses another quality prized by Trump: experience on Fox News, where Makary has weighed in on President Joe Biden’s cognitive health, the state of modern medicine, and popular science questions such as what happens when you stop drinking alcohol as a New Year’s resolution.

Makary has been a frequent critic of U.S. public health agencies’ response to the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that officials pursued overly harsh vaccination mandates and did not countenance alternative strategies, such as the protection conferred by infection, also known as “natural immunity.”

“I think public health officials need to come clean and say, ‘We got natural immunity way wrong,’” Makary testified in front of the House committee investigating the coronavirus response last year.

If confirmed, Makary will be leading the agency at a time when public health officials are concerned Kennedy’s oversight could erode public trust in the safety and effectiveness of vaccines. Kennedy, who founded a prominent anti-vaccine group, has linked the childhood vaccine schedule to autism, a claim that has been debunked by scientists. – With The Washington Post report