[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 34, Number 43 (Monday, October 26, 1998)]
[Pages 2087-2088]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Senate Action To Confirm the Commissioner of the Food and 
Drug Administration

October 21, 1998

    I am extremely pleased that today the Senate, with strong bipartisan 
support, overwhelmingly voted to confirm Dr. Jane E. Henney to be the 
next Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. I am confident 
that as the first woman and first oncologist to be confirmed as FDA 
Commissioner, Dr. Henney will live up to the trust the Senate has placed 
in her.
    The Nation now has an FDA Commissioner who is committed to assuring 
that Americans have safe food, safe and effective drugs and medical 
devices, and improved

[[Page 2088]]

public health. Dr. Henney has blazed many trails, and no one is more 
qualified to lead the FDA. She has served four Presidents and helped 
guide some of America's finest academic health centers. Her expertise in 
science and technology and lifelong dedication to individual patients 
will enable her to strike the important balance between the need for 
timely approval of prescription drugs and medical devices, while 
maintaining safety and quality.
    I commend the Democrats and Republicans who worked to give Dr. 
Henney a full and fair hearing and help expedite this confirmation. I 
also want to thank representatives of consumers, physicians, nurses, and 
the industry for their steadfast and strong support for Dr. Henney. 
Their combined leadership made a vital contribution toward assuring we 
have the right person to lead the FDA into the 21st century.