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President Obama appointed Dr. Margaret Hamburg as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) March 14. Hamburg spent six years as New York City's health commissioner and brings to the FDA a strong background in bioterrorism, which experts say will serve her well in the new role.

“Obviously if you're in the field of bioterrorism, you're not in the 'wait and see' mode,” says Christopher Campbell, a partner at DLA Piper. “[The decision] struck me as in line with the aggressive, proactive approach the administration seems to be taking.” Hamburg served as the founding vice president for the Biological Program of the Nuclear Threat Initiative. Campbell says FDA inspectors used the assertive permission granted by bioterrorism laws to get inside Peanut Corporation of America plants in February to evaluate factory conditions.

Bala Swaminathan, former chief of the foodborne disease lab with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says Hamburg's appointment is an astute decision. “She has a strong public health background,” he says. “She's well regarded nationally and internationally. And hopefully she will get the agency working better.”