WASHINGTON, DC (Sept., 14, 2004) — Sheila Dearybury Walcoff has been appointed to the post of associate commissioner for external relations at the Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

In her new role, Walcoff, an attorney, will be a senior advisor to Crawford, providing executive level policy and program direction for FDA’s interactions, information exchanges and liaison activities with the agency’s stakeholders and other external audiences, including industry, advocates, patient groups, the media, and professional organizations.

She will supervise FDA’s Office of Public Affairs, Office of the Ombudsman, Office of Special Health Issues, and the Advisory Committee Oversight and Management Staff.

Walcoff most recently served as a senior associate with the Washington law firm of Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP, where she provided legal and strategic counsel on a variety of health issues, including patient safety and health technology.

Prior to that she served as majority counsel for the Armed Services Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives. Walcoff is a 1993 graduate of Georgetown University Law Center.