(Reuters) -U.S. Food and Drug Administration commissioner Marty Makary has chosen former biotech executive George Tidmarsh as the director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, citing a person familiar with the decision.
Tidmarsh’s appointment as the agency’s top drug regulator could be announced as soon as Monday, the report said, citing the person who asked not to be identified.
Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay, the acting head of the division, recently announced she was leaving the agency, according to the report.
The Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the FDA, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Tidmarsh also did not immediately respond to email and LinkedIn requests for comment.
Tidmarsh, a Stanford University-affiliated pediatrician, will oversee one of the FDA’s largest and most important divisions, which regulates over-the-counter and prescription drugs, including biological therapeutics and generic drugs.
In May, he took part in an FDA expert panel to discuss the safety and necessity of talc as an additive in food, drug and cosmetic products.
“It’s not if talc should be removed from the U.S. market. It’s a matter of how and when. It’s a dangerous substance. We have safer, more modern low cost alternatives,” Tidmarsh had then said.
He previously served as the chief executive officer of Horizon Pharma — a company he founded in 2005. While at Horizon, he led all aspects of development of Duexis, which was approved by the FDA for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
Tidmarsh also held senior positions at other biotechs such as SEQUUS Pharmaceuticals and Coulter Pharmaceutical. He retired from Revelation Biosciences’ board in May.
(Reporting by Sriparna Roy and Sneha S K in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
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