May 12, 2026
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FDA Commissioner Marty Makary resigned Tuesday after disagreements with the Trump administration over the FDA's approval last week of fruit-flavored vapes. Anti-abortion groups and pharmaceutical companies also criticized Makary during his 13-month tenure.
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary resigned Tuesday after a 13-month tenure that included criticism from various groups, including anti-abortionists and pharmaceutical companies, and culminated with weeks of conflict with the Trump Administration.
For Makary, the final straw was the FDA's approval last week of fruit-flavored e-cigarettes, a move that he opposed. The New York Times reported that Makary told several confidants that his conscience would not allow him to approve the vapes due to their appeal among young people.
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Makary's resignation came days after the Washington Post reported that White House officials had approved plans to replace him.
The FDA is charged with ensuring the safety of food, medication and medical devices, as well as with regulating tobacco and veterinary products. Politico broke the news of Makary's resignation.
Kyle Diamantas, the FDA's food commissioner, is taking over as acting commissioner.
Makary had been criticized by some Republicans for enabling telehealth prescriptions of the abortion pill mifepristone and by pharmaceutical companies that were unsatisfied with the FDA's medication approval process during his tenure, Politico reported.
Makary also came under fire from public health experts for releasing an unsupported internal memo that linked 10 children's deaths to the COVID-19 vaccine.
"He has offended almost everyone involved in FDA. issues, which is not easy to do," Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Center for Health Research, told the New York Times.
Makary drew the praise of some Republicans during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he criticized many of the health measures being taken. President Donald Trump tapped him to lead the FDA early last year. But the Associated Press reported that Makary failed to gain the confidence of the FDA's staff after layoffs, key leadership changes and several controversies.
"He's a great doctor, and he was having some difficulty," Trump told reporters outside the White House on Tuesday. "But he's going to go on and he's going to do well."
