FDA Revitalization Act renamed, amended and still hotly debated; floor vote is imminent

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NewsTarget.com printable article

http://www.newstarget.com/021825.html

Originally published May 1 2007

FDA Revitalization Act renamed, amended and still hotly debated; floor vote

is imminent

by Mike Adams

 

The hotly-debated S.1082 legislation sponsored by Sen. Kennedy has now been

renamed the Enhancing Drug Safety and Innovation Act of 2007, reports Brenna

Hill of the Health Freedom Foundation and American Association

(www.HealthFreedom.net). The bill is being hotly debated and has been

delayed by two days due to the introduction of various amendments. The

health freedom community is continuing its grassroots efforts to rally

public support for defeating the bill, even while some lawmakers such as

Sen. Byron Dorgan are proposing much-needed amendments that would vastly

improve it.

 

Health freedom author and nutritional supplement formulator Byron Richards

has spearheaded much of the commentary on this bill, and support for

defeating the bill has come from many camps in the health freedom movement,

including the Life Extension Foundation (www.LEF.org), raw foods pioneer Dr.

Gabriel Cousens (www.TreeofLife.nu), John Hammel's International Advocate

for Health Freedom (www.nocodexgenocide.com), the National Health Federation

(www.TheNFH.com) and many others. Even Freedom to Fascism producer Aaron

Russo (www.freedomtofascism.com) is closely monitoring this situation and

sending health freedom email updates to his rs.

 

Hundreds of thousands of comments and complaints have already been received

by U.S. lawmakers concerning this bill. The latest update of legislative

maneuvers is provided by Byron Richards in an article reprinted here with

permission from www.NewsWithViews.com

 

Of special interest is the development of a new amendment that would end the

U.S. pharmaceutical monopoly and allow Americans to purchase prescription

drugs from other countries. This single amendment, which would bring free

trade to medications and save American citizens, corporations, cities and

states billions of dollars in reduced pricing for prescription drugs, has

Big Pharma and their legislative lapdogs circling the wagons, hoping to pass

this bill quickly before any other " bright ideas " threaten Big Pharma's

stanglehold on organized medicine.

 

What's at stake here is nothing less than the future of our nation. Because

if we cannot end this medical monopoly and radically reform the FDA, Big

Pharma will bankrupt our national economy and leave America broke, diseased

and medicated from the cradle to the grave.

 

Here's the update as reported by Richards:

 

 

Fight Erupts on Senate floor: Senators Bribed by Big Pharma vs. Senators not

Bought Off

By Byron Richards, CCN

 

As the Senate continues to debate the Big Pharma-friendly sweeping reform of

the FDA a new problem for Big Pharma's prize Senators has erupted and

quickly turned into confrontation on the floor of the Senate. At stake is at

least 10 billion dollars per year in exorbitant Big Pharma profits. In one

corner is Big Pharma-puppet Orrin Hatch (R-UT), representing the

Kennedy/Enzi drug cartel. In the other corner is a majority of Senators lead

by Byron Dorgan (D-ND).

 

At issue is an amendment that Dorgan has added to S1082, one that is

vehemently opposed by the authors of the bill and by the White House.

Dorgan's amendment calls for Americans to be able to purchase prescription

drugs from other countries. This would bring to an end the Big Pharma

price-fixing scam that has Americans paying at least twice as much for the

same drugs. Hatch unsuccessfully pleaded with Dorgan (while attacking him)

to withdraw the amendment. Bush is threatening to veto the entire bill if

the Dorgan amendment is part of the legislation.

 

 

The Safety Scam

The Kennedy/Enzi/Hatch/Clinton drug-cartel Senators are now in a real jam.

Dorgan has the votes to make his amendment stick. Hatch and company have

argued unconvincingly that the Dorgan amendment would expose Americans to

adulterated drug imports. This is just another fake safety argument that

holds no water and is being made solely to protect the excessive profits of

Big Pharma (as is the entire bill).

 

It should now be crystal clear to the American public that those behind this

legislation have been completely purchased by the Big Pharma lobby. It is a

complete joke that they are trying to pawn off this legislation as " safety

legislation. " This legislation is designed to protect Big Pharma profits for

the next 50 years, and includes new FDA regulatory powers that can be used

to stamp out Big Pharma competition - including dietary supplements. Let

your Senators know that you support the Dorgan amendment.

 

 

A Vote is Likely on Thursday

Word from the hill is that all amendments and changes to this legislation

will be finalized by Thursday and a vote will take place. In addition to the

Dorgan amendment several other amendments are expected to come up - one very

good and one very bad. The good amendment will be proposed by Senator

Grassley (R-IA) and will seek to create an independent office within the FDA

to monitor the safety of drugs already on the market (this would be another

big blow to this legislation). The bad amendment will come from the

vitamin-hating Dick Durbin (D-IL) who will try to place food safety

legislation into this drug safety bill. Not only is his amendment completely

irrelevant to this legislation, he will, as always, figure some way to

attack dietary supplements. I'll keep you posted.

 

We must also get our amendment, THE PEOPLE'S AMENDMENT, into this

legislation (see action letter at following this article).

 

 

The People are Now Being Heard

We have word that the offices of Hatch, Harkin, Enzi, Kennedy, and many

other Senators are being flooded by your concerns regarding what this bill

can do to undermine health freedom and your access to dietary supplements.

Their offices are seeking to tell those who get through that we are confused

and that the legislation is not about dietary supplements.

 

Don't buy this for a second. We are not confused. The language in the bill

is crystal clear. It is a sneaky and devious wording buried in the bill. The

Senate drug cartel hoped we wouldn't notice. On pages 106-107 it states:

" The purpose of the Foundation is to advance the mission of the Food and

Drug Administration to modernize medical, veterinary, food, food ingredient,

and cosmetic product development, accelerate innovation, and enhance product

safety....The Foundation shall [take] into consideration the Critical Path

reports and priorities published by the Food and Drug Administration,

identify unmet needs in the development, manufacture, and evaluation of the

safety and effectiveness, including post approval, of devices, including

diagnostics, biologics, and drugs, and the safety of food, food ingredients,

and cosmetics. "

 

This language has been evaluated by Jonathan Emord, our nation's leading

attorney that defends health freedom, the man who has beaten the FDA in

court more than any other lawyer. He states that this language gives the

FDA, through this foundation, broad new regulatory power that it currently

does not possess, including the authority to attack any dietary supplement

(which are food ingredients). A simple amendment to correct this problem has

been prepared by Emord and is in the action letter that follows.

 

WE ARE BEING HEARD. KEEP SENDING IN YOUR MESSAGES. There are two days to go.

We can win this!

 

See recent updates at:

http://www.newswithviews.com/Richards/byron24.htm

http://www.newswithviews.com/Richards/byron23.htm

 

 

Sample letter

Anti S.1082 Food and Drug Revitalization Act

May 2, 2007

The Honorable (Senator First and Last Name)

(List their address here)

 

Dear Senator Last Name; The issue of drug safety and access to drugs at a

fair price is of the utmost importance to myself and all Americans. In

general, I am opposed to Senate bill S1082: Food and Drug Administration

Revitalization Act, as it does not go far enough to protect myself and my

family from the dangers of drugs. As one of the 150 million Americans that

rely on dietary supplements to keep myself and my family well, I am

especially concerned that this legislation broadens FDA regulatory power to

harass functional foods and dietary supplements - which has nothing

whatsoever to do with drug safety.

 

It is vital that the terms " food " and " food ingredients " be removed from

this legislation. There must be no confusing the safety of drugs and the

safety of food and food ingredients - which are governed by different laws.

This bill authorizes, on pages 106-107, the creation of a new regulatory

category that enables the FDA and the Reagan-Udall Foundation for the FDA to

attack dietary supplements and functional foods. This problem in the wording

can be corrected with this simple amendment - so as to be sure this

legislation is about drugs and drug safety only.

 

Amendment to Bill S1082

 

Purpose of the amendment: The bill, S1082: The Food and Drug Administration

Revitalization Act, is hereby amended to eliminate any reference to the

terms food or food ingredients, such that food and food ingredients will not

be subject to any jurisdiction or control by the Regan-Udall Foundation for

the Food and Drug Administration.

 

Intent of amendment: To eliminate from the bill any possibility that food or

food ingredients would be treated like drugs either for safety review

purposes or for assessment of their efficacy. It is a fundamental tenet of

food and drug law that foods and food ingredients are presumed to be safe

and have to be established to be adulterated only if they present a

significant or unreasonable risk of illness or injury

 

I am in favor of the Dorgan amendment that enables Americans to get a fair

price on prescription medication.

 

I am in favor of any Grassley amendment that offers an independent office

within the FDA to monitor the safety of drugs already on the market.

 

I am opposed to the amendment being prepared by Durbin, as food safety is a

completely different issue and must be kept out of drug safety legislation

so that there can be no confusion between drug safety and food safety laws -

which are quite different.

 

Sincerely,

 

About Byron Richards: Richards is the founder of Wellness Resource

(www.WellnessResources.com) and author of Fight For Your Health! The FDA's

Betrayal of America

 

 

 

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