Well, duh. A new report from the GAO (Government Accounting Office) FDA Advisory Committees: Process for Recruiting Members and Evaluating Potential Conflicts of Interest, found that “FDA employed many of the same recruitment and evaluation practices used by organizations previously identified by GAO as employing methods that could ensure an independent and balanced advisory committee.”
“… an independent and balanced advisory committee.” Thank you.
But, according to the report, the FDA faces barriers when it comes to recruiting qualified advisory committee candidates without actual or potential conflicts of interest. According to the GAO, “the agency may have been able to mitigate these barriers by expanding its outreach efforts,” since “the same leading experts that industry sought to conduct research” are those being recruited to serve on FDA advisory committees.
Does “mitigate” mean recruiting the second best and the almost brightest? Not acceptable.
It reminds me of the old Groucho Marx quip , "I wouldn't join any club that would have me as a member."
