FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg is stepping down

(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

published 5 February 2015

Dr. Margaret Hamburg has been commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration since May 2009, making her one of the longest-serving FDA chiefs in modern times. That will in end March, government officials say, when Hamburg steps down. Dr. Stephen Ostroff, the agency's chief scientist, will replace Hamburg on a temporary basis, but newly named Deputy Commissioner Dr. Robert Cahill, who oversees medical products and tobacco, is widely seen as frontrunner to replace Hamburg, The Wall Street Journal reports.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.