--- title: "Government Handing Out Cash Bonuses to Drug Researchers Who Rush Through Regulatory Approvals" description: "The Food and Drug Administration has announced quarterly cash bonuses for employees who complete drug reviews ahead of schedule." date: "2026-03-03" modified: "2026-03-03" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins" url: "https://futurism.com/health-medicine/drugs-fda-bonus" categories: - "Finance" - "Future Society" - "Health & Medicine" - "Medical" - "RX and Medicine" - "Treatments" --- # Government Handing Out Cash Bonuses to Drug Researchers Who Rush Through Regulatory Approvals ![A joyful man in a dress shirt and striped tie throws his arms up as blue bills rain down around him against a bright orange background with a large yellow circle behind his head.]() *Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. Source: Getty Images* Not even a year after the US Food and Drug Administration announced it was [using generative AI]() to speed up the drug review process, the agency has another bold announcement: employees who make quick work of their assignments will be handsomely rewarded for their dedication. According [to the *Associated Press*](), FDA commissioner Marty Makary recently unveiled a new "pilot program" involving cash bonuses for drug reviewers who complete their work ahead of schedule. The reward for fast regulatory work will come in the form of a quarterly bonus, to be paid out to FDA staffers starting in August. Per the *AP*, payment amounts will be based on vague "weighted time savings," as well as "work quality and work complexity." "My job as your commissioner is to be your advocate and to fight for you," Makary told drug reviewers in a presentation viewed by the *AP*. "If you don't like it, we can get rid of it, but usually everybody loves money." What all of this means in practice is unclear. Never before in its history has the FDA paid staff according to speed or performance metrics, so there are likely to be some negative consequences. Once the system goes live, the FDA will essentially be paying its drug reviewers to approve applications faster in order to receive a financial reward — a conflict of interest that will all but guarantee increased reliance on the agency's [error-prone AI system](). Beyond that obvious ethical morass, there's also the question of how the bonus will be distributed, given that some teams of drug reviewers are made up of large numbers of contributors and other auxiliary personnel. All this comes as the FDA's drug and biologics centers have shed nearly [20 percent of its workforce]() since Donald Trump took office in 2025. Led by draconian cuts from Health and Human Services secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, the mass exodus is just the latest in a long history of setbacks for an FDA which has struggled to [maintain funding]() while fighting to [maintain independence]() from the incredibly powerful pharmaceutical lobby. What this new reward system means for US consumers is anybody's guess, but it's sure to be a bumpy ride. **More on the FDA:** *[FDA Working to Remove the Stuff in Cigarettes That Feels Good]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()