U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner Dr. Lester M. Crawford announced the appointment of Rear Admiral Linda R. Tollefson to the position of assistant commissioner for Science. Most recently, Tollefson served as deputy director of the Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM). In her new position, she will also serve as coordinator for Commissioned Corps Affairs at FDA and direct FDA's offices of Women's Health and Orphan Products Development.
"Tollefson has given exemplary service to FDA for 21 years in a variety of key positions. Science underpins all of FDA's decisions, and with her many years of experience as a manager and scientist at FDA, Tollefson is the best choice to help lead FDA's key office for science," said Crawford. "In addition, FDA's Commissioned Corps is in the midst of transformation and will become an even more significant part of FDA in the coming years."