Oversight Committee to Question FDA Commissioner

The U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee will question U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Robert Califf as part of an investigation into the agency’s handling of tobacco and nicotine products regulation, among other issues, according to a press release.

Last year, the committee announced an investigation into the FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP). “We have deep concerns that the CTP’s decisions have been influenced by political concerns rather than scientific evidence,” wrote Oversight Committee chairman James Comer in a letter for Califf. “Comments from FDA staff to RUF [the Reagan-Udall Foundation] … reflect such concerns.”

Other members of Congress have also questioned the FDA’s commitment to fair regulation, with a bipartisan group of senators asking Califf in 2023 to explain the FDA’s premarket tobacco product application process.

The hearing is scheduled for April 11 at 1 p.m. EDT. It will be live streamed on the committee website and on YouTube.