Michael Rogers, a top official at the Food and Drug Administration, announced Monday he is retiring amid the Trump administration’s mission to revamp the agency.
Rogers, who oversees the FDA’s drug and food safety inspections, told CBS News that “it was time after 34 years” at the department to step aside.
Recommended Stories
- Trump DOJ to defend Biden abortion pill rules
- Trump freezes funding for virus research blamed for starting COVID-19 pandemic
- Democratic states sue Trump administration over HHS cuts
The top inspector’s resignation comes as his department adjusts to a new direction under the Trump administration, focused on reducing the size of government and streamlining bureaucratic operations.
In recent months, the Department of Health and Human Services has carried out a “reduction-in-force” targeting nearly 3,500 FDA employees in primarily administrative roles, cutting roughly 20% of its workforce. The cuts have caused deep turmoil, according to multiple reports, including the alleged layoffs of senior negotiators at the FDA who talk with pharmaceutical companies to renew user fee programs that fund the drug review system.
Meanwhile, back-to-the-office mandates had FDA employees complaining of “absolute chaos” boiling among their ranks in March.
The changes come as the recently appointed head of the FDA, Dr. Marty Makary, has said he is on a mission to transform the agency’s management.
“I’m on a listening tour,” the FDA chief said during a recent interview on the Megyn Kelly Show. “We’re talking to the career scientists, we’re trying to make sure they have all the resources they need to do their job. We’re trying to change the culture here to make it more of a teamwork culture. It’s been very siloed.”
“Each of the centers has developed their own fiefdom, with their own communications department and lawyers and lobbyists for Congress, and IT departments and the IT systems don’t talk — they’re on different systems,” he continued. “So I’m doing an inventory right now, trying to assess the lay of the land, and then we’re also trying to change the culture to a culture of teamwork, the scientific gold standard, and common sense, working together. And that is our goal right now.”
Amid the shake-up, Rogers’s final day at the office will be May 14, per CBS. The network reported that he has been miserable recently due to changes made to his agency under Makarty and Kennedy’s leadership.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the FDA for comment.