The Alliance for Hioppocratic Medicine’s lawsuit seeking to force the Food and Drug Administration to revoke its approval of mifepristone, a widely used abortion medication, has received significant attention. (I’ve blogged on administrative law issues in the case here and here.) Less attention has been made to a parallel lawsuit filed by Demoratic state attorneys […]
In November, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it would soon determine whether Narcan, the nasal spray form of naloxone, is safe for use without a prescription. It planned to fast-track approval within months. On March 29, the FDA approved Narcan for sale over the counter. The decision is a welcome, but long […]
When I swallow, knives cut my throat. I cough and sometimes can’t stop. That’s frightening. I caught COVID. Dodged it three years. But this week, I suddenly felt lousy, and a home test said: “positive.” The thermometer said: 101.8. No big deal, I thought. Almost everyone gets COVID. Lots of people say it’s no worse […]
On March 15, a federal district court in Texas heard arguments in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. Food & Drug Administration, in which AHM is seeking to force the FDA to revoke its approval of mifepristone, a widely use abortion medication. While most commentary on the case has focused on the substance of the suit, the […]
When supply chain issues caused a baby formula shortage last year, Congress (eventually) cut tariffs to help get more formula onto American store shelves. It worked! Imports of baby formula soared during the second half of 2022 after tariffs and other regulations were lifted. Stores reported lower out-of-stock rates and news stories about panicked parents […]
In January, the Food & Drug Administration denied R.J. Reynolds Vapor (RJRV) Company’s application to market menthol-flavored electronic cigarettes. This is no surprise as the FDA has denied most e-cigarette applicaitons and has yet to approve a non-tobacco-flavored e-cig application. RJRV sued, and sought a stay of the FDA’s order (so that RJRV could continue […]
Since 2020, when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began considering millions of applications from companies seeking permission to keep selling their nicotine vaping products, it has rejected almost all of them. All of the products it has approved are tobacco-flavored, reflecting the agency’s conviction that other flavors, which are the ones that former smokers […]
Lab-grown chicken is closer than ever to hitting American grocery store shelves. GOOD Meat, a company developing “cultivated” meat made from chicken cells, announced on Tuesday that it has received a “no questions” letter from the Food and Drug Administration, meaning that the product has been deemed safe to eat. While this is a major […]
The Battle for Your Brain: Defending the Right to Think Freely in the Age of Neurotechnology, by Nita A. Farahany, St. Martin’s, 288 pages, $29.99 “We are rapidly heading toward a world of brain transparency, in which scientists, doctors, governments, and companies may peer into our brains and minds at will,” Duke University bioethicist Nita […]
Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, prescriptions for Adderall, the stimulant medication used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), skyrocketed. There were two main reasons. Due to social distancing, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) allowed physicians to prescribe Schedule II controlled substances via telehealth appointments. And second, parents noticed that their children, suddenly relegated to […]