FDA's Spielberg to depart

FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg announced in an internal memo that Stephen Spielberg will depart as deputy commissioner for medical products and tobacco, effective Feb. 15, due to a family medical issue. The position was created about a year and a half ago to coordinate the regulatory and scientific activities of FDA's centers for drugs, biologics, devices and tobacco. The agency said Spielberg, who was the first to hold the position, focused much of his time and attention on personalized medicine initiatives, though he has not been publicly identified with any major initiatives or changes in agency practice. Spielberg will become editor-in-chief of the newly launched journal Therapeutic Innovation & Regulatory Science in March. ...