Senators from Maine and Maryland want the federal government to extend the shelf life of prescription drugs that are in short supply to try to help address shortages.
Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin introduced the bill, which would direct the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to make the change. The FDA has said amending expiration dates of some drugs could help alleviate shortages, according to the senators.
The proposal would update FDA guidance about stability testing that is tied to expiration dates, the senators said. It would also require the FDA to submit a report with information about labeling changes about expiration dates that the agency’s secretary requests of manufacturers, they said.
Collins said because of the burden of the COVID-19 pandemic, “the last thing doctors, nurses, and patients should have to worry about is whether there will be an adequate supply of the medications they need.”
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.