Marty Makary out as head of US Food and Drug Administration

Marty Makary out as head of US Food and Drug Administration7 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleSareen HabeshianGetty ImagesUS Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Marty Makary is leaving his post, President Donald Trump said on Tuesday. Makary, in the role for just over a year, had faced criticism both from inside and outside the Trump administration, including for his resistance to authorising flavoured vapes and to tightening restrictions on abortion pills."He was having some difficulties," Trump told media at the White House, adding that the role would be filled by a deputy until a permanent replacement is found. The British-American surgeon is the latest top health official to be ousted under Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. Earlier this year, HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O'Neill left his post. The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Susan Monarez, left the agency last year.Makary, a former surgeon at the prestigious Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins University, rose to prominence as an advocate for the Make America Healthy Again movement.As he left the White House on Tuesday for a state visit to China, Trump confirmed Makary's exit while taking questions from reporters.He praised him as "a great doctor" and "a friend"."He's going to go on and he's going to do well," said the president, without specifying whether Makary was fired or resigned.In his role as commissioner, which includes assuring the safety and efficacy of prescription drugs and regulating tobacco products, Makary reportedly sparked internal tension when he pushed back against a White House plan to authorise more flavoured vapes.Makary had blocked FDA approval of vape fruit flavours made by a US company, even after scientists at his agency had greenlit the products, the Wall Street Journal reported last month.Health advocates have long argued that fruit-flavoured vapes are da...