FDA Action Threatens to Cut Off Access to Needed Medications

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http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/08/28/fda-action-threatens-to-cut-off-access-to-needed-medications.aspx?source=nl

FDA Action Threatens to Cut Off Access to Needed Medications

Physicians

who prescribe hormones containing estriol have grown concerned about

the FDA’s so-called “abbreviated” Investigational New Drug (IND)

application for estriol. The process will effectively ban most

physicians from prescribing a medication they consider best for their

patients.

The IND places a significant financial burden on physicians, most

notably by requiring them to submit applications to an Institutional

Review Boards (IRB). Submitting necessary documentation and contracting

for a private IRB can easily cost between $10,000 and $25,000 and can

take months.

The FDA’s new policy threatens the access of this important

medication for patients who rely on hormones containing estriol to

relieve the symptoms of menopause. It could force them off treatment

their doctors have deemed necessary, and would either deny them

treatment or subject them to the unnecessary expense and inconvenience

of a new treatment regime.

Millions of women have been prescribed estriol and have used it safely for decades.For Mercolas comments, check webpage