Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., announced Friday he would oppose the president’s nominee to lead the U.S. Food and Drug Administration over his alleged ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
Sanders said in a news release that he opposed Dr. Robert Califf, the cardiologist who President Barack Obama nominated in September to run the FDA, because of his “extensive” ties to the pharmaceutical industry, including a history of running drug trials at Duke University while making a salary funded by companies such as Merck.
Sanders wrote that Americans are paying the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs, and one in five Americans can’t afford the drugs their doctors prescribe. The industry makes $45 billion in profits each year, he says, and has 1,400 lobbyists spending $250 million annually.
“At a time when millions of Americans cannot afford to purchase the prescription drugs they need, we need a new leader at the FDA who is prepared to stand up to the pharmaceutical companies and work to substantially lower drug prices,” Sanders said in a news release. “Unfortunately, I have come to the conclusion that Dr. Califf is not that person.”
Gov. Peter Shumlin also opposes the nominee. He issued a news release in September urging senators to oppose Califf, who the New York Times says would have “deeper ties to the pharmaceutical industry than any FDA commissioner in recent memory.”
Shumlin said that approving Califf would be “reckless and unwise and sends the exact wrong signal to an American public that has already lost faith in the F.D.A.’s ability to prioritize public health over the pharmaceutical industry’s profits.”
