(March 6, 2024) The Reagan-Udall Foundation for the FDA has announced new officers and two new members of its Board of Directors. 

Adrian F. Hernandez, MD, MHS, a Board member since 2019, has been elected to serve as the Board’s Vice Chair. Debra L. Ness, MS, on the Board since 2022, assumes the role of Treasurer. Lynne Zydowsky, PhD, a Board member since 2019, is the board’s new Secretary. 

Pietro Antonio Tataranni, MD, and Reed V. Tuckson, MD, FACP, were appointed to four-year terms on the Foundation’s Board. Dr. Tataranni serves as the Chief Medical Officer of PepsiCo, where he advises the company on key health, science, and medical issues impacting its products, people, and communities. He also leads PepsiCo's Life Sciences strategy and the Research and Development Fellows Program as its Executive Sponsor. Dr. Tuckson is the Managing Director and Founder of Tuckson Health Connections LLC, a private health and medical care consulting company. Currently, Dr. Tuckson serves as a Co-convener of the Coalition For Trust In Health & Science, which is dedicated to bringing together the entire health-related ecosystem to support people’s ability to make evidence-based personally appropriate health choices for themselves, their families, and the communities in which they live. 

“We congratulate Dr. Tataranni and Dr. Tuckson on their appointments and welcome them to the Board of Directors,” said Board Chair Richard L. Schilsky, MD, FACP, FSCT, FASCO. “Their exceptional experience and perspective will be invaluable to our efforts to support the FDA and advance regulatory science.”  

Drs. Tataranni and Tuckson join the FDA Foundation Board comprised of 16 exceptional leaders from academia, patient and consumer advocacy, FDA-regulated industry, health care, and other disciplines. A complete list of Board members and their bios is available here. 

The FDA Foundation Board also expressed its appreciation for three departing Board leaders: founding Board member Georges Benjamin, MD, MACP, and Board members Allan Coukell, BScPharm, and Molly Fogarty. “We are incredibly grateful for their years of dedication and leadership,” remarked Phil Febbo, MD, Chief Scientific and Medical Officer at Veracyte, Inc., and Chair of the Foundation’s Governance Committee. “They have each contributed greatly to the Foundation’s growth and evolution.”