Home Topics Drug Discovery BIO 2026: FDA Leadership Confront Workforce Losses, China Competition in Drug Development Panelists during the FDA town hall at BIO 2026. (L to R) Lowell Zeta, JD, acting chief of staff at the FDA; Karim Mikhail, CBER acting director; Michael Davis, MD, PhD, CDER acting director [Uduak Thomas] SAN DIEGO — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is in the middle of a cultural and operational shift that goes beyond leadership changes.