Celia Witten, M.D., Ph.D., is no longer deputy director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER), joining the long list of health agency leaders who have departed since President Donald Trump began his second term in office.
“I have left the FDA,” Witten said in an automatic reply to an email from Fierce Biotech.
Witten is no longer listed among the CBER’s leadership on an organizational chart that was updated Feb. 21. A Feb. 5 screenshot of the same web page taken by the Internet Archive shows Witten listed as a deputy director as of Oct. 24, 2024.
A slew of senior health staff members have departed federal agencies since Trump took office as his administration rolls out mass layoffs across the Department of Health and Human Services.
Other FDA leaders that are out the door include former CBER chief Patrizia Cavazzoni, M.D.; Troy Tazbaz, former director of the AI-focused Digital Health Center of Excellence; and Ross Segan, M.D., former head of medical device safety.
Renee Wegrzyn, Ph.D., former director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, was also removed from her position. And, at the National Institutes of Health, Deputy Director for Extramural Research Michael Lauer, M.D., has left, and Principal Deputy Director Larry Tabak, Ph.D., retired effective Feb. 11.
The FDA has not responded to Fierce Biotech's request for comment as of publication.