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Trump on Tuesday tabbed Georgia Congressman Tom Price, a former
orthopedic surgeon and fierce Obamacare critic, to head the
Department of Health and Human Services.
Califf, a cardiologist and high-profile researcher from Duke
University, became the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
commissioner in February. He will submit a letter of resignation as
part of presidential transition protocol, which may or may not be
accepted.
"Rob Califf is a very thoughtful and sensible guy, and I hope they
can keep him in the FDA," said Dr. Steven Nissen, chief of
cardiology at the Cleveland Clinic.
In conversations about the future of U.S. healthcare with heart
doctors and researchers at the recent American Heart Association
scientific sessions in New Orleans, Califf remaining at his post was
high on many wish lists.
"We need to have a more nimble, more forward-thinking FDA, which was
evolving under Dr. Califf's short tenure," said Dr. Clyde Yancy, a
former AHA president from Northwestern University Feinberg School of
Medicine in Chicago.
"We should allow that experiment to continue because the return on
that investment could be enormous," Yancy said, adding that advances
in drug discovery science and precision medicine could depend on who
leads the National Institutes of Health and FDA.
Doctors want to see increased funding for the NIH, which they view
as a critical engine for drug discovery.
Dr. Joshua Hare, director of the Interdisciplinary Stem Cell
Institute at the University of Miami, said Califf was doing "a
spectacular job."
"He's got the absolute right background and he was just getting
started," said Hare, calling Califf "a highly respected academic
cardiologist."
Califf is not without critics, including former Democratic
presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders, who believed him too
close to the pharmaceutical industry he is charged with regulating.
In a distinguished research career, Califf has consulted with, or
conducted clinical trials for, some two dozen drugmakers.
Those ties could work in Califf's favor, given Trump's perceived
pro-business stance. PhRMA, the leading trade group for the
pharmaceutical industry, declined to comment on Califf or FDA
leadership.
Dr. Mary Walsh, a heart failure specialist from St. Vincent Heart
Center in Indianapolis, was optimistic that bipartisan support for
Califf, who was confirmed by an 89-4 U.S. Senate vote, will help him
retain the post.
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Walsh said Califf has sought input from various medical societies on
what they would like to see from the FDA.
"I think he has a fresh approach and I personally am very hopeful
that the new administration will be supportive of his continuing on
as FDA commissioner," said Walsh, who will be the next American
College of Cardiology (ACC) president.
Some doctors were concerned about how the next president's aversion
to regulation might affect the FDA's mission.
"I worry that they may have the attitude that there's too much
regulation in government in general and the FDA in particular," said
former ACC President Dr. Patrick O'Gara from Brigham & Women's
Hospital in Boston.
Califf has "a really broad overview of regulatory affairs as well as
these issues about safety that affect patient care," O'Gara said. "I
think he's terrific for the job."
Dr. Douglas Weaver, another past ACC president from the Henry Ford
Health System in Detroit, said Califf should be allowed to continue.
"He's looking for things that help early regulatory approval for
conditions for which there's no treatment and expediting approvals
over what we've seen in the past," Weaver said. "Those are all good
things."
(Reporting by Bill Berkrot; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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