The Commissioner of Food and Drugs is the head of the Food and Drug Administration

Food and Drug Administration

The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...

 (FDA), an agency

Government agency

A government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...

 of the United States Department of Health and Human Services

United States Department of Health and Human Services

The United States Department of Health and Human Services is a Cabinet department of the United States government with the goal of protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is "Improving the health, safety, and well-being of America"...

. The commissioner is appointed by the president of the United States

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 with the advice and consent

Advice and consent

Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts, describing a situation in which the executive branch of a government enacts something previously approved of by the legislative branch.-General:The expression is...

 of the Senate

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

. The commissioner reports to the Secretary of Health and Human Services

United States Secretary of Health and Human Services

The United States Secretary of Health and Human Services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, concerned with health matters. The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet...

.

Due to frequent controversies involving the FDA, appointments are not always prompt and the agency is often headed by an acting commissioner. For example, Andrew von Eschenbach

Andrew von Eschenbach

Andrew C. von Eschenbach was the Commissioner of the United States Food and Drug Administration from 2006–2009. He became acting Commissioner on September 26, 2005, after the resignation of his predecessor Lester Crawford, and was confirmed as Commissioner by the Senate on December 7, 2006...

's appointment was held up by senators who objected to the FDA's refusal to allow emergency contraception

Emergency contraception

Emergency contraception , or emergency postcoital contraception, refers to birth control measures that, if taken after sexual intercourse, may prevent pregnancy.Forms of EC include:...

 to be sold over the counter

Over-the-counter drug

Over-the-counter drugs are medicines that may be sold directly to a consumer without a prescription from a healthcare professional, as compared to prescription drugs, which may be sold only to consumers possessing a valid prescription...

.

The commissioner has frequently been a physician

Physician

A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

, but this is not a requirement for the post.

List of Commissioners

No.	Name	Portrait	Took Office	Left Office	President President of the United States The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....  served under	Notable for
1	Harvey Washington Wiley, M.D.		January 1, 1907	March 15, 1912	Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity... , William Howard Taft William Howard Taft William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...	Chemist Chemist A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms... ; advocacy of the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act Pure Food and Drug Act The Pure Food and Drug Act of June 30, 1906, is a United States federal law that provided federal inspection of meat products and forbade the manufacture, sale, or transportation of adulterated food products and poisonous patent medicines...  in 1906; subsequent work at Good Housekeeping Institute Good Housekeeping Good Housekeeping is a women's magazine owned by the Hearst Corporation, featuring articles about women's interests, product testing by The Good Housekeeping Institute, recipes, diet, health as well as literary articles. It is well known for the "Good Housekeeping Seal," popularly known as the...  laboratories Laboratory A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
2	Carl L. Alsberg M.D.		December 16, 1912	July 15, 1921	William Howard Taft William Howard Taft William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States... , Woodrow Wilson Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913... , Warren G. Harding Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
3	Walter Gilbert Campbell		7/16/1921	6/30/1924	Warren G. Harding Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator... , Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
4	Charles Albert Browne, Jr. Charles Albert Browne, Jr. Dr. Charles Albert Browne, Jr. was a renowned sugar chemist and former head of the Bureau of Chemistry, which later became the Food and Drug Administration-Early life and education:...		7/1/1924	6/30/1927	Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
3	Walter Gilbert Campbell		7/1/1927	4/30/1944	Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state... , Herbert Hoover Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business... , Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
5	Paul B. Dunbar, Ph.D.		5/6/1944	5/31/1951	Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war... , Harry S Truman
6	Charles W. Crawford		6/1/1951	7/31/1954	Harry S Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
7	George P. Larrick		8/12/1954	12/27/1965	Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army... , John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963.... , Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
8	James Lee Goddard, M.D.		1/17/1966	7/1/1968	Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
9	Herbert Leonard Ley, Jr., M.D.		7/1/1968	12/12/1969	Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States... , Richard M. Nixon
10	Charles C. Edwards, M.D.		12/13/1969	3/15/1973	Richard M. Nixon
11	Alexander Mackay Schmidt, M.D.		7/20/1973	11/30/1976	Richard M. Nixon, Gerald R. Ford
12	Donald Kennedy Donald Kennedy Donald Kennedy is an American scientist, public administrator and academic.Donald Kennedy was born in New York and educated at Harvard University... , Ph.D.		4/4/1977	6/30/1979	Jimmy Carter Jimmy Carter James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
13	Jere Edwin Goyan, Ph.D.		10/21/1979	1/20/1981	Jimmy Carter Jimmy Carter James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
14	Arthur Hull Hayes Jr. Arthur H. Hayes Jr. Arthur Hull Hayes Jr. was an American pharmacologist. As Commissioner of Food and Drugs, he led the Food and Drug Administration.-Early life:... , M.D.		4/13/1981	9/11/1983	Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
15	Frank Edward Young Frank Edward Young Frank Edward Young was a U.S. administrator and physician. He served as commissioner of Food and Drug Administration between 1984 and 1989. Dr. Young is now a senior partner at The Cosmos Alliance, a Maryland-based venture capital firm.... , M.D., Ph.D.		7/15/1984	12/17/1989	Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
16	David Aaron Kessler David Aaron Kessler David Aaron Kessler is an American pediatrician, lawyer, author, and administrator... , M.D.		11/8/1990	2/28/1997	George H. W. Bush George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to... Bill Clinton Bill Clinton William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
17	Jane Ellen Henney Jane E. Henney Jane Ellen Henney is an American physician who was the first woman to serve as commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Appointed by President Bill Clinton, she served at the FDA between 1998 and 2001... , M.D.		1/17/99	1/19/2001	Bill Clinton Bill Clinton William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
18	Mark Barr McClellan Mark McClellan Mark Barr McClellan is currently the Director of the Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform, Senior Fellow in Economic Studies and Leonard D. Schaeffer Director's Chair in Health Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC. McClellan served as Commissioner of the United States... , M.D., Ph.D		11/14/2002	3/26/2004	George W. Bush George W. Bush George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
19	Lester Mills Crawford Lester Crawford Lester Mills Crawford is an American veterinarian and former Commissioner of Food and Drugs.Crawford resigned as head of the Food and Drug Administration in September 2005 after a stormy two-month stint... , D.V.M., Ph.D.		7/18/2005	9/23/2005	George W. Bush George W. Bush George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
20	Andrew C. von Eschenbach Andrew von Eschenbach Andrew C. von Eschenbach was the Commissioner of the United States Food and Drug Administration from 2006–2009. He became acting Commissioner on September 26, 2005, after the resignation of his predecessor Lester Crawford, and was confirmed as Commissioner by the Senate on December 7, 2006... , M.D.		12/13/2006	1/20/2009	George W. Bush George W. Bush George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
21	Margaret A. Hamburg Margaret A. Hamburg Dr. Margaret Ann Hamburg is an American physician and medical/public health administrator. She currently serves as Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.... , M.D.		5/22/2009	present	Barack Obama Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...