Washington: Dr. Robert Califf, a senior Google Health advisor, has been named the next chief of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by US President Joe Biden. Dr.  Califf is currently a professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, where he previously served as Vice Chancellor and founded the Duke Clinical Research Institute, and works as a senior advisor for parent firm Alphabet's Verily Life Sciences and Google Health divisions. With over 1,200 articles in the peer-reviewed literature, he has conducted many groundbreaking clinical trials and is one of the most frequently referenced authors in biomedical science.

"It is critically critical that we have a steady, independent hand to lead the FDA as it examines numerous consequential decisions concerning vaccine approvals and more," Biden said in a statement on Friday. "I am certain that Dr. Califf will ensure that the FDA continues to make decisions based on research and evidence," he continued.

A Verily Covid-19 testing programme, a Google tool to discover skin disorders, personal health data, and machine learning (ML) projects are among the most recent health research efforts. Dr. Califf is a well-known expert in clinical trial research, health disparities, healthcare quality, and cardiovascular medicine around the world.

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