Contact: Katharine Glenn, kglenn@acc.org, 202-375-6472

WASHINGTON (Feb 05, 2015) -

The American College of Cardiology President Patrick T. O’Gara, MD, FACC, issued the following statement in response to the announcement that Food and Drug Agency Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, MD, would step down:  

“Dr. Margaret Hamburg has led the Food and Drug Administration for six years during an exciting and fast-changing time in American health care. We at the American College of Cardiology thank her for her dedication to public health. During her time at the FDA, she partnered with professional societies on a variety of important initiatives, including the STS/ACC Transcatheter Valve Registry. The ACC hosted her at our annual Legislative Conference this past year. Dr. Hamburg championed evidence based decision-making, nurtured a climate of innovation at the Agency and increased collaboration with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to aid beneficiaries’ access to new therapies. Dr. Hamburg’s accomplishments are changing the landscape of medicine and helping clinicians improve outcomes for their patients. We wish her well and look forward to working with her successor and the dedicated professionals at the FDA on issues that affect the care of our patients.”

The American College of Cardiology is a 47,000-member medical society that is the professional home for the entire cardiovascular care team. The mission of the College is to transform cardiovascular care and to improve heart health. The ACC leads in the formation of health policy, standards and guidelines. The College operates national registries to measure and improve care, provides professional medical education, disseminates cardiovascular research and bestows credentials upon cardiovascular specialists who meet stringent qualifications. For more information, visit acc.org.

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