Vioxx and a Proposed Drug Board

December 7, 2004 

      

Around here, we’ve got a lot of folks who suffer from “aging” aches and pains…arthritis, old injuries, and such…and most of us are looking for the best relief we can find.  The over-the-counter products:  Advil, Aleeve, Motrin and all the rest work pretty well…but sometimes we need something more.

Up until a few months ago, many doctors were prescribing Vioxx…but then it was discovered that the so-called Cox-2 inhibitors like Vioxx had some very serious cardiovascular

side effects.  Some local doctors we’ve talked with became aware of the fact there was an issue with Vioxx and stopped prescribing it some time back.  But by the time the authorities took some

definitive action with Vioxx…it’s estimated the drug had caused about 140,000 heart attacks.

A recent edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association has called for what the Journal referred to as a “drug board” to do some serious policing of drugs previously approved by the Food and Drug Administration, but that are suspected of having dangerous

side effects.

As much as we NEED serious policing of all drugs…the idea of this “drug board” does cause us concern.  Some experts say this “drug board” might intimidate the FDA into not approving many new and badly needed drugs.  The FDA has been accused for years of dragging its feet getting new drugs on the market, while the  Canadians and Europeans move ahead with approving many beneficial new drugs without un-due hesitation.

The existence of this “drug board” could also frighten off some good doctors from prescribing certain advantageous drugs, especially in a time when there is precious little medical liability reform, when doctors are being sued all over the place, and when their insurance rates are becoming unaffordable.

Some expert observed a while back that it costs about $800 million to get a new drug on the market.  It seems like if there’s THAT much investment, research and development  going into a new drug,

along with the strict over-sight of the Food and Drug Administration….that ought to be enough.

Some things obviously fell through the cracks with Vioxx…but the cracks just need to be sealed back up…another level of beaucracy, like the proposed “drug board” is not the answer.

We need to be moving ahead vigorously…getting drugs on the market that heal, save lives and ease pain.  Any additional federal beaucracy would only slow this process down.

Let’s get new drug out and in use…and lets make GOOD use of what mechanisms are already in existence for being sure they’re safe and effective.  What happened with Vioxx should not happen again. But more federal beaucracy should not happen, either.