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I copied this from a health forum I follow as it is something that needs all the coverage that it can get.
OK guys, time to wake up and take this matter into hand. Write your congressman, your senators, contact all blog sites you communicate with . We've got to move on this issue ASAP
Contact Elected Officials | USA.govContact Elected Officials | USA.gov and look up the phone numbers of your U.S. Senators and your Representative (congressman). Then give them a call.
Don't be shy and don't worry. No one is going to bite you, no one is going to argue with you, and no one is going to quiz you to see how well you know the issues. The job of the staffers who answer is to listen politely and to relay what you say to their boss. So please do call. And please be polite and respectful of the staffers' time.
Here are some talking points to use when you call:
Hello, my name is [name] and I am a constituent of [name of Senator or Representative].
I am very concerned about the new FDA draft guidance on dietary supplements and new dietary ingredients.
[Feel free to tell them about the supplements you take and/or the benefits you get from those supplements. Then feel free to make as many of the following points as you like:]
Supplements have an unrivaled safety record. Statistics show they're safer than drugs, safer than medical devices, safer than cosmetics, and even safer than food.
The FDA cannot define New Dietary Ingredients so broadly. According to these guidelines, almost everything is a New Dietary Ingredient. This will strangle innovation and deprive consumers of the supplements they depend on for their health.
The FDA did nothing about new dietary ingredients for 17 years. Now they want to wipe out 17 years' worth of innovation and 17 years' worth of benefits to the consumer.
When the Dietary Health Supplement Education Act was passed, Congress intended a simple notification process for new dietary ingredients. The FDA is turning this into a pre-approval scheme, which goes against the intent of the law.
The FDA already has ample regulatory authority to take action against a product if it's unsafe. They don't need to have this pre-approval power, too.
These could be disastrous to public health. At a time when preventative measures are even more important to health care costs, the FDA is limiting access to preventative health care.
The cost of complying with these guidelines would be astronomical. Experts estimate that the studies required would cost between $100,000 and $200,000 per ingredient notification. That adds up to millions of dollars per supplement company. Smaller companies would not be able to afford this and would go out of business.
The economy is already hurting and we have high unemployment. Experts estimate that this could cost the economy tens of billions of dollars and result in the loss of tens of thousands of jobs.
The government's resources are already stretched. We have record budget deficits and record debt. Why enact more regulations when there are no safety issues here?
I request that Congress direct the FDA to carefully review their draft guidance. If they do not amend the guidance to reflect my concerns, I request that Congress call hearings at the end of the review process. I also call on Congress to write legislation that would "grandfather" all supplements currently on the market.
Thank you for your time.
After the phone call, send a letter to your senators and reps, making the same points. Make sure the letter is in your own words (form letters tend not to work as well). You can find the e-mail and physical addresses at the same website, Contact Elected Officials | USA.gov.
Then send the same letter to President Obama. (His address and phone number are on the website, too.)
Please, please, please don't make the mistake of thinking that the FDA won't take your supplements away. Similar regulations were passed in other countries, and the result was disastrous. Many supplements were taken off the market forever. In some instances, the entire supplement industry was decimated. Don't let that happen here.
Take action now! You only have a small window of opportunity to make your voice heard. Get started by going to Contact Elected Officials | USA.gov.
OK guys, time to wake up and take this matter into hand. Write your congressman, your senators, contact all blog sites you communicate with . We've got to move on this issue ASAP
Contact Elected Officials | USA.govContact Elected Officials | USA.gov and look up the phone numbers of your U.S. Senators and your Representative (congressman). Then give them a call.
Don't be shy and don't worry. No one is going to bite you, no one is going to argue with you, and no one is going to quiz you to see how well you know the issues. The job of the staffers who answer is to listen politely and to relay what you say to their boss. So please do call. And please be polite and respectful of the staffers' time.
Here are some talking points to use when you call:
Hello, my name is [name] and I am a constituent of [name of Senator or Representative].
I am very concerned about the new FDA draft guidance on dietary supplements and new dietary ingredients.
[Feel free to tell them about the supplements you take and/or the benefits you get from those supplements. Then feel free to make as many of the following points as you like:]
Supplements have an unrivaled safety record. Statistics show they're safer than drugs, safer than medical devices, safer than cosmetics, and even safer than food.
The FDA cannot define New Dietary Ingredients so broadly. According to these guidelines, almost everything is a New Dietary Ingredient. This will strangle innovation and deprive consumers of the supplements they depend on for their health.
The FDA did nothing about new dietary ingredients for 17 years. Now they want to wipe out 17 years' worth of innovation and 17 years' worth of benefits to the consumer.
When the Dietary Health Supplement Education Act was passed, Congress intended a simple notification process for new dietary ingredients. The FDA is turning this into a pre-approval scheme, which goes against the intent of the law.
The FDA already has ample regulatory authority to take action against a product if it's unsafe. They don't need to have this pre-approval power, too.
These could be disastrous to public health. At a time when preventative measures are even more important to health care costs, the FDA is limiting access to preventative health care.
The cost of complying with these guidelines would be astronomical. Experts estimate that the studies required would cost between $100,000 and $200,000 per ingredient notification. That adds up to millions of dollars per supplement company. Smaller companies would not be able to afford this and would go out of business.
The economy is already hurting and we have high unemployment. Experts estimate that this could cost the economy tens of billions of dollars and result in the loss of tens of thousands of jobs.
The government's resources are already stretched. We have record budget deficits and record debt. Why enact more regulations when there are no safety issues here?
I request that Congress direct the FDA to carefully review their draft guidance. If they do not amend the guidance to reflect my concerns, I request that Congress call hearings at the end of the review process. I also call on Congress to write legislation that would "grandfather" all supplements currently on the market.
Thank you for your time.
After the phone call, send a letter to your senators and reps, making the same points. Make sure the letter is in your own words (form letters tend not to work as well). You can find the e-mail and physical addresses at the same website, Contact Elected Officials | USA.gov.
Then send the same letter to President Obama. (His address and phone number are on the website, too.)
Please, please, please don't make the mistake of thinking that the FDA won't take your supplements away. Similar regulations were passed in other countries, and the result was disastrous. Many supplements were taken off the market forever. In some instances, the entire supplement industry was decimated. Don't let that happen here.
Take action now! You only have a small window of opportunity to make your voice heard. Get started by going to Contact Elected Officials | USA.gov.
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