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FTC Announces New Leadership for Healthcare Competition Oversight

By  |  September 11, 2025

The Federal Trade Commission announced the appointment of Emma Mittelstaedt Burnham as Associate Director for Healthcare in the Bureau of Competition. The decision was confirmed in a statement from Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson, who emphasized Burnham’s background in antitrust enforcement.

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    “I am delighted to appoint Emma as Associate Director for Healthcare in the Bureau of Competition. She is a talented attorney with many years of experience at the Department of Justice as a senior antitrust enforcer,” Ferguson said. “Emma will be an invaluable champion in the FTC’s ongoing fight to protect Americans’ access to affordable, high-quality healthcare.”

    According to a statement from the FTC, Burnham brings over a decade of experience at the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, where she most recently held the role of Director of Criminal Enforcement. In that position, she supervised nationwide price-fixing cases and oversaw enforcement actions targeting illegal corporate practices. Her tenure also included roles as Trial Attorney, Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General, Assistant Chief, and Acting Chief.

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    Per the FTC’s statement, Burnham previously led investigations into antitrust violations in the healthcare sector, particularly within the generic pharmaceutical market. These efforts resulted in corporate prosecutions, the largest criminal penalties imposed in domestic cartel cases, and the first-ever use of divestiture in a criminal antitrust settlement.

    Before her government service, Burnham worked as a criminal defense associate in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. She holds degrees from Georgetown University and the University of Chicago Law School, graduating with honors, and served as a law clerk to Judge Robert W. Gettleman in the Northern District of Illinois.

    Source: FTC