WASHINGTON – Democrats’ landslide victory in the midterm elections may have significant implications for the upcoming negotiations over a key funding source for the Food and Drug Administration in part by empowering a major critic of the program.
The FDA collects user fees from pharmaceutical companies to fund the agency’s reviews of their medicines. The Prescription User Fee Drug Act must be renewed before the current law expires on Sept. 30. Otherwise, it could disrupt the FDA’s ability to approve medicines.
The power to shape that legislation will fall to senior Democrats, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who is likely to lead the Senate’s health committee. Sanders is one of the few lawmakers who have opposed the core premise of the user fee structure.
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