The Senate voted on May 9 to confirm Scott Gottlieb, MD, as commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in a 57-42 vote. Gottlieb previously served as a senior advisor to the FDA Commissioner, then as the FDA's Deputy Commissioner for Medical and Scientific Affairs during the administration of Former President George W. Bush. He also played a large role in the implementation of the Medicare drug benefit as a senior advisor to the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). One of Gottlieb’s biggest tasks will be implementing the 21st Century Cures Act, a law signed by Former President Barack Obama late last year that directs the FDA to speed up drug approvals. Immediately prior to his confirmation, Gottlieb served as a Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a Clinical Assistant Professor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine of New York University, and a venture capitalist. He also served on several company boards, such as Bristol-Myers Squib, GSK Vertex Pharmaceuticals and others. Since 2013 he has served as a member of the Federal Health IT Policy Committee, advising the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on the Electronic Health Record Incentive Program requirements and other health IT-related programs.

Keywords: Drug Approval, Electronic Health Records, Medicaid, Medicare, United States Dept. of Health and Human Services, United States Food and Drug Administration

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