Califf nominated as FDA commissioner

Robert Califf, MD, FDA deputy commissioner for medical products and tobacco, has been nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as the next commissioner of the FDA, according to a press release from the White House.

The nomination was one of several announced this week for positions throughout the Administration.

Robert Califf

“I am confident that these experienced and hardworking individuals will help us tackle the important challenges facing America, and I am grateful for their service. I look forward to working with them,” Obama said of Califf and the other nominees in the release.

Califf was appointed deputy commissioner for medical products and tobacco in January. In this role, he oversees the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, the Center for Devices and Radiological Health, the Center for Tobacco Products and the Office of Special Medical Programs.

Califf’s nomination as FDA commissioner will require confirmation from Senate. If confirmed, he would replace acting commissioner Stephen Ostroff, MD, who assumed the role after Margaret A. Hamburg, MD, resigned in February.

“I’ve always worked closely with FDA and believe in its mission,” Califf told Cardiology Today in January following his appointment to his current deputy position. “My career decisions have always been made on whether I feel that my talents are best being used, my family well-being and personal happiness. In this case, the fit seemed just right.”