This morning, I went into the Federal Register pre-publication page and noticed there were no postings from the FDA. While this usually happens maybe two or three times a month, I also noted that there were no new postings on the What’s New page on the FDA website. Then I saw that MSN posted an article (here) that explained the Trump administration has directed federal health agencies to pause communications. While this is reported to be a temporary measure until February 1, according to Acting Health Secretary Dr. Dorothy Fink, it is nevertheless a bit chilling.
The article notes that “federal health agencies [have been asked] to pause external communications, such as regular scientific reports, updates to websites and health advisories, according to sources within the agencies. As the new Administration considers its plan for managing the federal policy and public communications processes, it is important that the President’s appointees and designees have the opportunity to review and approve any regulations, guidance documents, and other public documents and communications (including social media),” Fink said in the memo (according to the MSN article).
While this practice is perhaps not unheard of, I have been around for over 40+ years and have never seen this type of thing happen before except in very unusual circumstances. Perhaps I have been shielded from some government policies, but this is somewhat a new one for me.
Not sure how this will impact the upcoming AAM Annual Meeting as far as the FDA participants are concerned, but it could certainly upset the apple cart if the FDAers are not able to attend or speak at that important conference. This pause is occurring while the FDA especially has been keeping the pharmaceutical industry and public more informed about issues of importance to all stakeholders. Hopefully, we will get some additional clarification as we get closer to the February 1 date. However, we all need to trust the integrity of the system and know that we all want what is best for our industry.