Lester Crawford

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Dr. Lester M Crawford

Dr. Lester M. Crawford (born 1939) is a former Commissioner of the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). On February 15, 2005, Dr. Crawford was nominated by President George W. Bush to head the FDA, pending U.S. Senate confirmation. The Senate Health Committee approved his nomination on June 15, and he was approved by the Senate on July 18. He resigned, effective immediately, on September 23 in a surprise announcement. The FDA had been under criticism since before his nomination to the post. His appointment was embattled from the beginning as several senators had threatened to place holds on his confirmation vote until the FDA made a decision on whether or not to allow over-the-counter sales of the "Plan B" or "Morning-after" emergency contraception pills.

The Senate Health committee is going to investigate the circumstances of Crawford's resignation, including his financial disclosures.

The White House had nominated Andrew von Eschenbach to succeed Crawford as acting commissioner.

Biography

Prior to becoming FDA Commissioner Dr. Crawford had served as Deputy Commissioner of FDA since February 25, 2002. From 1997-2002, he was Director of the Center for Food and Nutrition Policy at Georgetown University and at Virginia Tech, where it moved to in 2001.

He also served as Administrator of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (United States Department of Agriculture) from 1987 to 1991 as well as director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine from 1978 to 1980, and again from 1982 to 1985. Previously in his career he was chair of the Department of Physiology-Pharmacology at the University of Georgia, executive director of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, and a practicing veterinarian.

Dr. Crawford received a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree from Auburn University in 1963 and a PhD in pharmacology from the University of Georgia in 1969.

He has been married since 1963 to Catherine Walker of Birmingham, Alabama. They have two daughters, Leigh and Mary, and four grandchildren.

Financial disclosure forms released by the Department of Health and Human Services showed that in 2004 either Dr. Crawford or his wife, Catherine, had sold shares in companies regulated by the agency when he was its deputy commissioner and acting commissioner. He has since joined a Washington lobbying firm, Policy Directions Inc.

His nomination stalled for two months after he was accused of an extramarital affair with an FDA employee. An investigation by the Department of Health and Human Services inspector general found no evidence of an affair. On April 28, 2006 it was announced that he was being investigated by a Grand Jury over accusations of financial improprieties and false statements to Congress. [Ex-Head of F.D.A. Faces Criminal Inquiry, by Gardner Harris, The New York Times, April 28, 2006, published April 29, 2006][Grand Jury Is Investigating Ex-Chief of FDA, Associated Press, Sunday, April 30, 2006; Page A07]

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