Thursday, March 02, 2006

FDA Shields Drug Companies From Lawsuits

Last month, the FDA revealed its latest protective policy for drug companies in a statement that said people who believe they have been injured by drugs approved by the FDA should not be allowed to sue drug companies in state courts.

"We think that if your company complies with the FDA processes, if you bring forward the benefits and risks of your drug, and let your information be judged through a process with highly trained scientists, you should not be second-guessed by state courts that don't have the same scientific knowledge," said Scott Gottlieb, the FDA's deputy commissioner for medical and scientific affairs.

The agency's assertion of "federal preemption" was included as a preamble to its new drug labeling guidelines.

Bonnie and Steve - This is proposterous. What this shows is that the drug industry can get the FDA to rewrite the rules so that CEOs can escape accountability for putting dangerous and deadly drugs on the market, and is yet again, another scary example how much control this industry has over government. Did we not learn from from the Vioxx example that the FDA and drug industry are too close for comfort? The FDA was and still is being manipulated by the drug industry. What other way than hitting them in the pocketbook will the drug industry understand the public's anger?


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