KENNEDY SAYS NEW FDA DRUG LABELING REGULATION IS AN ABUSE

Washington, DC: Today the Food and Drug Administration issued new drug labeling rules that state that federally approved medication labels pre-empt state law. This statement gives a boost to pharmaceutical makers by offering them protection from lawsuits from patients who are injured by their products. Under the new regulations, drug companies are given support from the FDA to claim that they weren't required to warn consumers about a particular risk. Senator Kennedy issued the following statement in response to FDA’s action:“It’s a typical abuse by the Bush Administration—take a regulation to improve the information that doctors and patients receive about prescription drugs and turn it into a protection against liability for the drug industry.” ###