FDA Commissioner Marty Makary Resigns After 13 Months Amid a Fight Over Flavored Vapes

Marty Makary resigned as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration after 13 months in the job, with the announcement reported on May 12 and 13. Coverage identified White House pressure to authorize flavored vaping products, which Makary opposed, as the immediate trigger. His tenure had also brought conflicts with allies of the Make America Healthy Again movement over his approval of updated COVID-19 vaccines and of a generic mifepristone, and criticism from drug developers over reversals on experimental therapies. Kyle Diamantas, previously deputy commissioner for food, became acting commissioner while the administration seeks a Senate-confirmed replacement.

The departure caps a period of documented turbulence at the agency: staff departures beyond the post-inauguration terminations, policy changes made without convening the FDA's standard advisory committees, and unilateral safety-label changes to hormone-replacement therapies without outside expert review. Dr. Ben Rome, quoted in the coverage, called the period "an unmitigated disaster for the FDA." The FDA's authority rests substantially on the perception that its decisions follow evidence rather than political direction, and a commissioner leaving over a product-authorization dispute tests that.

Diamantas, a lawyer rather than a physician or scientist, was serving in an acting capacity as of the reporting reviewed.