Personal Troubles for FDA's Dr. Maisel

Jane Akre
|
August 7, 2012

Dr. William Maisel, Fox TV

August 7, 2012 ~ This item apparently bypassed the desk of MDND. Last month, Deputy Director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Dr. William Maisel, was reportedly arrested in a prostitution sting operation in Maryland, according to MassDevice (here).

According to the case report here , Dr. Maisel, 46, was arrested on Friday, July 13 after allegedly offering a plain-clothes female police officer money for sex. He is facing four charges of prostitution solicitation and one charge of disorderly conduct. His case is set for trial September 20 in Ellicott City, Maryland.

MyFoxDC-TV reported ten men were arrested in Howard County during a reverse prostitution sting. This was the second operation of the year by Howard County and was conducted along the U.S. 1 corridor in Laurel.

FDA co-workers greeted the news with a mixture of shock and sadness, reports Pharmalot (here). There are 30 comments on Pharmalot of a mixed nature.

Dr. Maisel is a prominent cardiologist who joined the FDA in August 2010. Dr. Maisel has been mindful of the delicate balance within the agency between the public and corporate interest. In testimony he has said device makers share some of the blame for a slow review process:

“Industry also shares a responsibility for the success of the review process and safety of medical devices. Data show that some companies submit poor quality applications, ask to meet with us but then ignore our feedback, or conduct poor quality clinical studies. This leads to unnecessary delays, wastes time and money for both industry and FDA, and exposes patients to unnecessary risks."

April 13, 2011 he spoke about A Delicate Balance: FDA and the Reform of the Medical Device Approval Process (here).

Dr. Maisel is named in a federal lawsuit filed by whistleblowers against the FDA along with chief Margaret Hamburg, Jeffrey Shuren and Kathleen Sebelius, of HHS, accusing them of retaliation and violating the FDA employees' rights to free speech and protection from search and seizures of personal email. Background story is here.

The FDA issued a statement to MyFoxDC.com saying this is a personal matter and not related to Dr. Maisel's work at the FDA.

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