Exit interview: Hahn departs after tumultuous tenure, advocating greater independence for FDA

FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn presided over the most tumultuous era in FDA’s history, one that will be remembered for the agency’s failure to take aggressive actions at the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, for politically motivated regulatory decisions, but also for the critical role it played in smoothing the path for COVID-19 countermeasures.

Hahn’s pushback against Trump and HHS, which came late in the day, may have restored some of his personal credibility, but it will take time and work to restore public confidence in the agency and to reverse the harm caused by last-minute rules and policies...