WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the Food and Drug Administration, Dr. Marty Makary, is resigning after a rocky tenure that drew months of complaints from health industry executives, anti-abortion activists, vaping lobbyists and other allies of President Donald Trump.News of Makary’s departure Tuesday came just 13 months after he was confirmed to lead the powerful regulatory agency.A surgeon and health researcher, Makary came to prominence among Republicans as an outspoken critic of public health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he frequently appeared on Fox News Channel. But he struggled to manage the FDA’s bureaucracy and failed to win the confidence of its staff after mass layoffs, leadership upheavals and a series of controversies in which the agency’s scientific principles appeared to be overridden by political interests, including those of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“He’s a great doctor, and he was having some difficulty,” Trump told reporters outside the White House. “But he’s going to go on and he’s going to do well.”
President Donald Trump talks with reporters as he departs the White House for travel to Beijing, Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in Washington, to meet with China’s President Xi Jinping. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
