Help Us Reform the FDA!
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We Have Done it Before
For those who don’t know the history of the Life Extension Foundation, we have battled bureaucratic ineptitude since the early 1980s. Our overriding motivation is the fact that our very lives are at stake if we fail to abolish today’s obsolete regulation of our health care.
One of our victories was the passage of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA).19 This legislation enabled consumers to learn about some of the benefits of dietary supplements. When the DSHEA legislation was initially proposed, it was apathetically viewed and most people thought it could never be enacted.
It took five years to pass DSHEA, but we eventually rallied so many consumers and industry leaders that Congress passed this landmark legislation. Please know that Life Extension was not the only one responsible for passage of DSHEA. Our support at its embryonic stage, however, set the stage for DSHEA to evolve from an obscure snowball in 1989 to an unstoppable avalanche in 1994.
It is now time again to educate Congress about the urgent need to reform the FDA. I plan to use the enormous success of long distance phone deregulation to help persuade the public and Congress that today’s health care cost crisis will largely disappear if we return to free market principles in health care.
Congressional Petition to Reform the FDA
To persuade Congress to address this monumental problem, a Petition to Reform the FDA has been drafted. (A copy of this Petition can be found by following the link.)
Our first mission is to collect so many names on the Reform FDA Petition that it compels Congressional action. We will hand deliver the Petition to Congressional leaders and urge them to enact comprehensive FDA reform.
I ask every Life Extension member to put their name on this Petition so that Congress knows the citizenry is behind this groundbreaking initiative.
The easiest way to sign the Reform FDA Petition is to do so online following the link. This new website has been set up by the American Association for Health Freedom (AAHF), an independent non-profit organization committed to the total overhaul of the FDA.
For longer life,
William Faloon
Headline Quotes Reveal Just A Few Examples of Today’s Health Care Crisis
The $34 Trillion Problem
Medicare is poised to wreak havoc on the economy. And our presidential candidates are avoiding the issue.2
Eli Lilly Settles Zyprexa® Lawsuit
$15 million settlement announced; state of Alaska alleged the drug caused health problems that cost Medicaid program hundreds of millions.3
Study: Drug Errors Hurt One in 15 Hospitalized Kids
Medicine errors, overdoses, bad reactions harm one in 15 hospitalized kids. This estimate translates to 7.3% of hospitalized children, or 540,000 kids annually. Patient safety experts say that the problem is most likely even bigger than the study suggests.4
US Lags Behind 41 Nations in Life Span
For decades, the United States has been slipping in international rankings of life expectancy, as other countries improve health care, nutrition, and lifestyles.5
FDA Blamed for Dip in New Drugs
New drug approvals down 31% so far this year: report; FDA still stinging from Vioxx® approval.6
Bureaucratic Obstacles Shouldn’t Stand in the Way of the Terminally Ill
Back in 2001, a vivacious, 21-year-old student at the University of Virginia – Abigail Burroughs – died of cancer. Her death was particularly heart-wrenching because, in the final weeks of her life, she was denied access to two investigational anticancer drugs recommended by her oncologist. The FDA later approved the drugs.7
US Reports of Death, Side Effects from Prescription Drugs Triple
Reports of dangerous side effects and deaths from widely used medicines almost tripled between 1998 and 2005, an analysis of US drug data found.8
Woman Left in CT Scanner After Clinic Closes
A cancer patient says she was left alone in a CT scanner for hours after a technician apparently forgot about her. She finally crawled out of the device, only to find herself locked in the closed clinic. Doctor says it has happened before.9
Breast Cancer Patients May Face More Heart Risk
Breast cancer survivors may face increased risk of heart disease. Doctors are debating if it is time to largely abandon a chemotherapy mainstay that is one reason for the problem.10
References:
1. Consumer Reports. 1983. Nov;48(11): 618-20.
2. Available at: http://money.cnn.com/ 2008/03/03/news/economy/ 104239768.fortune/index.htm. Accessed June 23, 2008.
3. Available at: http://www.newsinferno.com/archives/1589. Accessed June 23, 2008.
4. Available at: http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/04/07/children.drug.errors.ap/index.html. Accessed June 23, 2008.
5. Available at: http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/ 2007/08/11/us_life_span_shorter/. Accessed June 23, 2008.
6. Available at: http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/15/news/companies/fda/index.htm. Accessed June 23, 2008.
7. Available at: http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2007/08/our-view-on-exp.html. Accessed June 23, 2008.
8. Available at: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,296427,00.html. Accessed June 23, 2008.
9. Available at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21033714/. Accessed June 23, 2008.
10. Available at: http://www.kmov.com/justposted/stories/kmov_health_071008_breastcancerheart
.14e95c1d0.html. Accessed June 23, 2008.
11. Available at: http://www.corp.att.com/attlabs/reputation/timeline/51trans.html. Accessed June 23, 2008.
12. Stewart RJ, Stewart AW, Stewart JM, Ibister WH. Cancer of the pancreas in New Zealand 1970-1974. Aust N Z J Surg. 1982 Aug;52(4):379-84.
13. Available at: http://www.pancreatica.org/Pancreatica%20Media%20Sheet.pdf. Accessed June 26, 2008.
14. Czernichow P, Lerebours E, Colin R. Epidemiology of cancer of the pancreas. Current data. Presse Med. 1986 Feb 22;15(8):387-91.
15. Available at: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/409001_2. Accessed June 26, 2008.
16 Faloon W. The FDA indicts itself. Life Extension. 2008 July;14(7):7-11.
17. Available at: http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/AC/07/briefing/2007-4329b_02_01_FDA%20Report%20on%20Science%20and%20Technology.pdf. Accessed June 23, 2008.
18. Available at: http://www.apma.net/aahf/default.asp. Accessed June 23, 2008.
19. Available at: http://www.fda.gov/opacom/laws/dshea.html. Accessed June 23, 2008.
