Scott Gottlieb, MD, announced his resignation as chief of the FDA on March 5. He plans to leave his post sometime next month.
Dr. Gottlieb has served in his post since May 2017, and has been a staunch advocate for developing new drugs and regulation. His resignation may especially affect biotech and pharmaceutical companies, as well as tech companies looking to move into the healthcare space.
Before appointing Dr. Gottlieb, President Donald Trump considered a variety of candidates for the position, including individuals who sought to dismantle FDA drug oversight and review process — a move that worried many pharma executives and health sector investors, STAT News reports.
"I think Scott was pretty much a best-case scenario for the sector that one could see under a Trump administration, so any replacement is probably going to be worse. Hopefully not much, much worse," a Baird biotech analyst told STAT.
During his time at the FDA, the physician and former venture capitalist also gained a reputation as a supporter of healthcare innovation, establishing programs like Pre-Cert, software that allowed tech giants like Apple to get approval for low-risk health products faster, CNBC reports.
"Scott did a lot culturally to make the agency easier to work with," Bob Kocher, a partner at venture capital firm Venrock, told CNBC. "I think he'll be missed by many in the tech industry, including the startups."