The headquarters of the United States Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, D.CWIKIMEDIA, COOLCAESERPresident Donald Trump signed an executive order on January 30, requiring that federal agencies repeal two regulations for every new one they propose. In a statement, Rick Pollack, chief executive officer of the American Hospital Association, praised the order as a step toward removing “red tape” that can drive up health care costs. Meanwhile, Joan Claybrook, former head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, had a decidedly less optimistic reaction. “People are going to die if you start eliminating safety standards,” she told the Los Angeles Times.
Lynn Goldman, dean of the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and a former assistant administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, spoke with The Scientist about the executive order, and the impact it may have on federal agencies including the EPA and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The Scientist: What do you think was President Trump’s goal in issuing this order?
Lynn Goldman: I think his intent is to follow through on a commitment made in the campaign to reduce regulation, and I believe there was then a verbal commitment that, for every regulation issued, two would be eliminated. And, overall, there are many supporters of the president who sense the importance of ...
