WASHINGTON— U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), and Chris Murphy (D-CT), members of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, applauded the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., for creating a new task force focused on drug shortages, following their request for action.
“Drug shortages prevent patients from getting the drugs they need and drive up the cost of care,” said Dr. Cassidy. “I appreciate the FDA responding to our request to help us find the causes and solutions to these shortages.”
“This is a real problem in Connecticut,” said Murphy. “I’m focused on making sure patients have access to the medications they need. I want to thank Commissioner Gottlieb for taking our request seriously and working to tackle the nationwide drug shortages crisis. This is a step in the right direction.”
Last month, Cassidy and Murphy asked Gottlieb to have “the Drug Shortage Task Force work with stakeholders and federal agencies to determine the root causes of drug shortages and develop recommendations to ensure that appropriate supplies of essential medications are always available.” They also asked the task force to submit its recommendations to Congress “no later than the end of 2019.”
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