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# Trump Poised to Nominate Hahn to FDA: Report
- URL: https://www.fdaweb.com/trump-poised-to-nominate-hahn-to-fda-report/
- Published: 2019-10-24T12:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-15T01:58:37.000Z
- Author: David McFarland
- Tags: FDA Policy/General, #legacy-id-D5145335

The *Washington Post* says it has learned that President **Donald Trump** is about to name MD Anderson chief medical officer **Stephen Hahn** to be FDA commissioner, succeeding acting commissioner **Ned Sharpless**. The *Post* [says](https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2019/10/24/trump-set-nominate-texas-cancer-doctor-head-fda/?ref=fdaweb.com) Hahn, 59, is a radiation oncologist and researcher who has been described as an “energetic consensus-builder with a disarming, folksy manner.”

Sharpless’ term as acting commissioner ends 11/1, but he could stay in place during Hahn’s confirmation, which could take months. Sharpless had expressed strong interest in being named permanent commissioner and had won support from dozens of cancer and other medical groups and several former commissioners. However, the newspaper says, Trump turned to Hahn after meeting with him in early September.

Hahn moved from the National Cancer Institute to the University of Pennsylvania in 1996 and was chair of radiation oncology from 2005 to 2014\. He then moved to MD Anderson in Houston as division head of radiation oncology and in 2017 was named the center’s chief operating officer at a time of mounting financial losses and staff cuts. He oversaw the center’s day-to-day operations and reportedly earned good reviews for his role in its financial turnaround and rebuilding of staff morale.

The *Post* says Hahn is a registered Republican who has contributed to some Republican campaigns, including the 2012 presidential run of **Mitt Romney**, and a few Democratic campaigns. Sharpless is not registered with either party and contributed to some Democratic candidates, including former president **Barack Obama**.

Texas state records list Hahn’s salary for the current fiscal year as $933,600, with total compensation of $1.3 million. The FDA commissioner earns about $160,000\. Hahn is married with four adult children, the profile says.