The FDA is expected to announce new rules today that will clarify how and under what circumstances it will allow researchers with financial ties to drug companies to advise the agency on new drug approvals. While researchers paid by marketing departments of drug companies to promote therapies are likely to be excluded from any discussions regarding that company's drugs, researchers will not be expected to step aside or gain a waiver if, for example, their university has received research funds from a drug company. The new rules will be put up for public comment before they can be adopted. They're unlikely, though, to permanently quell the ongoing controversy regarding the FDA's reliance on researchers who have financial ties to the drug industry.
- here's the article on the FDA from The New York Times