Nominee to please everyone?

In a choice that may satisfy a diverse array of competing interests, the Bush administration has finally nominated a director for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). If the Democrat-controlled Senate approves the nomination, Mark McClellan, a physician and economist who is currently the president's top advisor on health policy, will fill a key science regulation post that has been vacant for almost two years.

The FDA has broad authority over drugs, medical devices, animal feeds, veterinary products and the majority of foods sold in the United States. It regulates products accounting for 20% of American consumer spending, and has 10,000 staff members and an annual budget of $1.7 billion.

For the past 20 months, the White House has insisted that a physician should head the agency, while pharmaceutical industry groups have lobbied against nominees who might seek to toughen regulations. Senate Democrats further constrained the nomination, saying they would reject any candidate with strong ties to industry. And the debate has been inflamed by anti-abortionist groups who want to rescind the approval of the abortifacient mifepristone, better known as RU-486, which has been used in over 100,000 medical abortions since its approval two years ago.

McClellan has served in both the Clinton and Bush administrations and has not publicly expressed any position on the status of mifepristone. He has no links to the pharmaceutical industry. Carl Feldbaum, president of the Biotechnology Industry Organization, says: “From Dr. McClellan's educational background and experience in medicine, healthcare, and economic policy, he appears to be an exceptional candidate.”