WASHINGTON: US President-elect Donald Trump is expected to appoint Martin McCurry, a Johns Hopkins surgeon and outspoken critic of coronavirus mandates, to head the Food and Drug Administration, according to two sources who spoke to Reuters on Wednesday.
McCurry has raised concerns about a number of public health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic, touting protection from natural immunity and opposing COVID vaccine mandates.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is the most influential drug regulator in the world with a budget of more than $7 billion. It is responsible for approving new treatments and ensuring they are safe and effective before entering a larger, more profitable market. It has regulatory authority over human and veterinary medicines, biological medicines, medical devices and vaccines.
The agency is also responsible for maintaining safety standards for food supplies, tobacco, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation.
Brian Hughes, a spokesman for Trump’s transition team, said he would not speculate or anticipate any announcement.
As FDA commissioner, McCurry will report to the head of the Department of Health and Human Services.
To lead the Department of Health and Human Services, Trump nominated Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental activist who spread misinformation about vaccine safety and one of several unconventional people Trump has chosen for top administration positions.
As a physician, McCary co-developed the Surgical Checklist, a routine for surgeons that has improved patient outcomes and has been disseminated worldwide by the World Health Organization.
His latest book, Blind Spots, was published in September. In interviews to promote the book, he spoke out against what he called “widespread overtreatment” in the United States, which he described as an “epidemic of inappropriate care.”
He has called for reconsidering the use of hormone replacement therapy in postmenopausal women, reducing the overuse of antibiotics and reforms to medical education.
McCurry, who lives in Baltimore, worked as a consultant for the Paragon Health Institute, a conservative health care think tank in Washington.
If confirmed by the Senate, he will succeed Dr. Robert Califf, a cardiologist and researcher who also served as FDA commissioner in the Obama administration.
In his second term, Califf revamped the agency’s food operations and inspections and tried to combat misinformation.