US Administration calls for additional $275M funding for FDA to be approved

Following requests from the US Food and Drug Administration for additional emergency funding of $275.0 million to allow the agency to carry out some of its oversight duties with respect to medicinal and food products (Marketletter June 9), Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt has announced that the Administration is amending its budget request for the fiscal year 2009 to include this additional amount for the FDA.

This request comes against a background of severe criticism of the agency in terms of its failure in preventing the import of fake and sub-standard drugs, including the heparin fiasco, as well as contaminated food products (Marketletters passim).

Mr Leavitt called on Congress to move swiftly on this budget amendment and pending Administration legislative proposals to strengthen the FDA. If approved, the funding would be supplemental to the agency's proposed 2009 budget of $2.4 billion.