ARTICLE SUMMARY:
In this week’s Pathways Picks: Sen. Bill Cassidy, a key legislator on FDA policies, loses his seat in a Republican primary; FDA departures include AI chief; EU notified bodies spotlight submissions slowdown and layoffs; updates from Malaysia, South Africa, AMA’s CPT panel, and more.
Exits in Congress and FDA
Key senator defeated, FDA departures:
Health chair loses Senate seat. Device industry ally Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) was ousted from the Senate in a May 16 Republican primary. Cassidy, a physician who served in the Senate since 2015 and in the US House prior to that, has been active on FDA issues for years, generally pressing for policies intended to streamline product reviews. The work culminated in becoming ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP) in 2023 and ascending to chairman in 2025, a post where he would have lead FDA user fee reauthorization and reform efforts next year. Two candidates with better ties to President Trump will compete in a Republican runoff next month. Cassidy’s vote to convict Trump after the 2021 impeachment of the president is widely cited as key reason for the senator’s decline in popularity in Louisiana. More recently, Cassidy has appeared to try to mend fences with the administration, including with his vote to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as HHS secretary despite significant disagreements over vaccine policies. Cassidy will retain the HELP chair post for the remainder of the year, where he will oversee the FDA commissioner confirmation process following last week’s resignation of Marty Makary, MD, once the president makes a nomination.
