US generic drugmakers urge more funding of FDA, especially OGD division

The Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) has reiterated its appeal for additional funding of the Food and Drug Administration in order that copy medicines can come to the market more quickly, as the anticipated drug 'patent cliff' floods the agency with ever more applications.

"Given the critical mission of the FDA to protect the public health, it is incumbent upon Congress to provide the agency with the resources it needs to fulfill this mission. There is no doubt that the FDA's Office of Generic Drugs (OGD) is severely underfunded. The administration's $51.5 million budget request for OGD - a $10 million increase over last year - is a meaningful step toward improving the office's funding. We encourage Congress to significantly increase this investment in OGD. Even a modest investment will produce significant savings. With generic medicines saving the health care system one billion dollars every three days, putting more resources into bringing safe and effective generics to consumers is a sound investment,' stated the GPhA's president and chief executive, Kathleen Jaeger.

"We applaud Subcommittee Chairman Herbert Kohl (Democrat, Wisconsin) and Ranking Republican Sam Brownback (Republican, Kansas) for their determination to give the FDA sufficient resources to ensure consumers have access to the affordable medicines they need. GPhA is committed to working with the Obama Administration and Congress to ensure that the dedicated FDA scientists and reviewers have the resources at their disposal to move the agency forward,' she said.