The head of the US Food and Drug Administration’s drug center resigned suddenly on Sunday after federal officials began reviewing “serious concerns about his personal conduct,” according to a spokeswoman for the US Department of Health and Human Services.
Dr. George Tidmarsh, who was appointed to the FDA position in July, was temporarily suspended last Friday after officials in the department’s Office of General Counsel reported concerns about his conduct, Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Emily Hilliard said in an email. Then Tidmarsh resigned yesterday morning, Sunday.
Hilliard explained, “Secretary Robert Kennedy expects all those working under his leadership to adhere to the highest ethical standards, and affirms his continued commitment to complete transparency.”
This resignation came on the same day that a pharmaceutical company linked to one of Tidmarsh’s former business partners filed a lawsuit accusing him of making “false and defamatory statements” during his tenure at the FDA. The lawsuit, filed by Aurenia Pharmaceuticals, said Tidmarsh used his position at the FDA to pursue a “long-standing personal vendetta” against the company’s chairman, Kevin Tang.
According to the lawsuit, Tang served as a member of the board of directors of several pharmaceutical companies where Tidmarsh served as CEO, including La Jolla Pharmaceuticals, and participated in his ouster from those leadership positions.
Messages sent to Tidmarsh and his lawyers were not immediately responded to as of Sunday evening.