FDA Employees Investigated: A federal grand jury...

FDA Employees Investigated: A federal grand jury is investigating allegations that employees at the Food and Drug Administration took cash in exchange for tipping off brokerage houses on when the agency would approve certain drugs, an FDA official said. The official, who requested anonymity, said FDA employees were subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury in Baltimore. According to the allegations, FDA employees passed on information about the drug-approval process to stockbrokers--for a price. The brokers then invested in the pharmaceutical firms that manufactured the drugs, knowing their stock price would rise once the drugs’ approval was announced.