From: John M Grigg (starman125@lycos.com)
Date: Sat May 19 2001 - 18:51:53 MDT
director!
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Hello everyone,
I was not sure if this had already been posted by Paul Wakfer so I am doing
so. A person sympathetic to extropian views is a candidate for FDA top
leadership. Please, do your part by using this post as a template to write
and/or fax the president. I have already done this but we all need to do
our part on such a crucial matter.
sincerely,
John
The Next FDA Commissioner
> Could Determine How Long You Live!
>
> May 17, 2001
>
> Dear Fellow Life Extensionist:
>
> The greatest obstacle to your health and longevity is the FDA.
>
> Bureaucratic barriers at the FDA stifle the development of novel
> medicines, causing the suffering and death of Americans who desperately
> need these therapies to stay alive.
>
> While Congress and the Federal Courts have helped curtail FDA
> over-regulation, today's flawed system continues to deny Americans access
> to the best that science has to offer.
>
> We now have a unique opportunity to change the course of medical history.
> President Bush is considering whom to nominate as the next FDA
> Commissioner.
>
> There is one candidate for the Commissioner’s job who has a plan to reform
> the FDA in order to speed the delivery of the fruits of medical research
> to every one of us.
>
> The name of this candidate is Mary J. Ruwart, Ph.D. The information that
> follows shows that Dr. Ruwart is uniquely qualified to reform an agency
> that has lost touch with scientific objectivity.
>
> It is imperative that you notify President Bush that Dr. Ruwart is the
> best person to remedy the severe problems that exist at the FDA. Please
> copy and mail the letter that follows to the President at the address we
> have provided.
>
> If you want to do more, and we hope that you will, we encourage you to
> write a personalized letter to mail or fax to The White House.
>
> We have also provided a phone number for those who want to call The White
> House to emphasize the importance of appointing Dr. Ruwart as the next FDA
> Commissioner.
>
> Even if you have not participated in these types of FDA-reform campaigns
> in the past, we urge you to do so on this critical issue.
>
> Our fear is that lifesaving therapies will continue to remain bogged down
> in FDA red tape if a change within the agency is not made. It has become
> so burdensome to gain FDA approval that innovative therapies in the U.S.
> are being abandoned because of extraordinarily high costs and uncertain
> bureaucratic delays.
>
> If Dr. Ruwart were to become the new Commissioner, this barrier against
> medical innovation would be diminished. More Americans would gain rapid
> access to novel medical treatments that could significantly extend the
> healthy human life span.
>
> What makes the FDA problem unique is the possibility that each of us will
> die from a disease that could have been effectively treated if the FDA
> didn’t stand in the way.
>
> Inefficient government thrives on citizen apathy, so please take the time
> to mail the enclosed letter to President Bush. The life you save may be
> your own!
>
> For longer life,
>
> William Faloon
>
> P.S. Those who understand the urgent need for FDA reform and want to do
> more should send The White House a personalized letter and/or make a phone
> call. The information that follows reveals how you can get your message
> through to The White House.
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> -------
> Dr. Mary J. Ruwart’s Letter to President Bush:
>
> May 8, 2001
>
> President G.W. Bush
> Presidential Personnel Office
> The White House
> Washington, DC 20500
>
> Dear President Bush,
>
> I am enclosing my Presidential Personnel Application Form and resume in
> order that you might consider my appointment as FDA Commissioner. Because
> you have already invited a number of market-minded individuals to your
> team, I hope that you will look favorably on my pro-market orientation.
>
> My nomination for FDA Commissioner is likely to enjoy widespread support,
> especially from the groups listed below.
>
> 1. Pharmaceutical industry. For almost twenty years, I was a research
> scientist at a major pharmaceutical company and understand the impact of
> regulatory delays. Former FDA Commissioner, Alexander Schmidt, once
> remarked, “The failure to approve an important new drug can be as
> detrimental to the public health as the approval of a potentially bad
> drug.” As your appointee, I would pursue a more cooperative approach with
> pharmaceutical firms in order to speed the delivery of new, life-saving
> medications to the American public.
>
> 2. Physicians. Doctors often prescribe approved medications for
> off-label uses in order to give their patients the best health care
> options. However, the FDA discourages drug companies from sharing
> information that would educate physicians about these choices for their
> patients. As your appointee, I would make this valuable knowledge on
> off-label use available to our dedicated health care practitioners.
>
> 3. Alternative practitioners. Health care professionals who utilize
> non-traditional methods of treatment are often subjected to prejudicial
> treatment by the FDA, even in the absence of patient complaints. As your
> appointee, I would intervene only when patients were at risk, thereby
> broadening our health care choices.
>
> 4. American public. Whenever Congress considered giving the FDA more
> control over nutritional supplements, voters inundated their
> representatives with protests. The American public clearly wants the
> freedom to choose what vitamins and minerals to take. As your appointee,
> I would honor the choice of my fellow Americans.
>
> 5. Dedicated FDA employees. FDA examiners are in a no-win situation. If
> they delay approving a drug with life-saving potential, many Americans,
> especially those with terminal diseases, die needlessly. If the FDA
> approves a drug and unpredictable side effects occur, the FDA is blamed.
> As your appointee, I will alleviate this situation, by allowing terminally
> ill patients to “opt-out” of the approval process. They will then have
> access to potentially life-saving medications which are not yet through
> FDA review.
>
> In 1999, a Federal Appellate Court ruled 11-0 that the FDA must abide by
> the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and permit truthful health
> claims for antioxidants, fiber, folic acid, and omega-3 fatty acids
> (Pearson vs. Shalala). The FDA ignored this decision and in February of
> this year was censured by the court for its failure to comply. As your
> appointee, I would make sure that the FDA abides by our Constitution, the
> law of the land.
>
> As your appointee, my goal will be to facilitate the conversion of the FDA
> from a bureaucratic regulatory regime into a market-oriented support
> system that maximizes our access to life-savings medications. Of course,
> only a team effort will achieve this dramatic shift. Win-win strategies,
> such as the ones described above, can help create alignment among groups
> who may sometimes be at odds with each other. I believe that I have the
> experience and the skills to create such an environment.
>
> I hope that you will seriously consider moving the FDA in a direction that
> will stimulate innovative drug development. After all, before we are
> politicians or special interest groups, we are human beings. Whether we
> enjoy a long life or a short one will largely depend on the availability
> of life-saving medications. I would be honored, as your appointee, to
> help the American peopleand yourselfachieve the longest, most productive
> life possible.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Mary J. Ruwart, Ph.D.
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> -----
>
> Letter for concerned citizens to send to President Bush:
> (Print out and mail to: The White House
> Washington, D.C. 20500
> or fax this letter to 1-202-456-2461)
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------
>
> Date:
>
> President George W. Bush
> The White House
> Washington DC 20500
>
> Dear President Bush:
>
> I request that you appoint Mary J. Ruwart, Ph.D., as the next Commissioner
> of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The reason for the urgency of
> this appointment is that serious institutional problems exist within the
> FDA that cause Americans to suffer and die needlessly. Dr. Ruwart has
> identified what's wrong with the FDA and has proposed practical solutions.
> I am concerned that anyone else you appoint will continue a "business as
> usual" approach that will not result in the kind of reform that is needed
> to prevent disease, injury and death by over-regulation. In her
> application to you, Dr. Ruwart stated, "My goal will be to facilitate the
> conversion of the FDA from a bureaucratic regulatory regime into a
> market-oriented support system that maximizes our access to life-saving
> medications." The public is becoming increasingly aware that the FDA is
> largely responsible for the high cost of prescription drugs in the U.S.
> When Americans are diagnosed with serious diseases, many are now seeking
> therapies that have not yet been approved by the FDA. I find it
> deplorable that the agency that is supposed to "protect the health of the
> American public" has become a major impediment to their access of new
> life-saving therapies.
>
> The most important issue to me is my health and the cost of prescription
> drugs. I therefore urge you to make a historic and humane decision by
> appointing Dr. Ruwart as the next Commissioner of the Food and Drug
> Administration.
>
> Please let me know your position on this issue.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> ___________________________________
> Signature
>
> Name____________________________________
>
> Address___________________________________
>
> City_____________________
>
> ST______ZIP_______
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---
>
> LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD AT THE WHITE
> HOUSE
> It’s Easier Than
> You Think!
>
> We live in a democratic society, yet few Americans take the time to let
> their elected officials know what is really important.
>
> In the case of the FDA, severe problems have been repeatedly identified,
> but a politically palatable solution has never been conveyed to the
> President of the United States. Since the President will be appointing a
> new FDA commissioner soon, it’s time to speak out. If we fail to point
> out an obvious way of reforming the FDA, it’s hard to complain later about
> the agency’s continuing inadequacies.
>
> For the first time in history, a qualified individual has emerged with a
> specific plan to turn the FDA into an organization that will facilitate,
> rather than impede, the development of new therapies to eradicate disease.
>
> It is now up to those of us who understand the FDA problem to convey the
> solution to the President. Our message to President Bush is simple. Dr.
> Mary J. Ruwart is the best qualified individual to lead the FDA out of the
> medical dark ages.
>
> History has shown us that FDA Commissioners are primarily concerned with
> maintaining the status quo, rather than resolving serious problems within
> the agency. This lack of vision is why Americans continue to suffer and
> die in the FDA’s “waiting room”.
>
> Dr. Ruwart has proposed meaningful reforms within the FDA. For those
> depending on scientific breakthroughs to stay alive, it is critical for
> the next Commissioner to have the vision to tear down the FDA’s barriers
> against medical innovation. Dr. Ruwart has emerged as the most viable
> candidate to implement these life-saving changes.
>
> The White House is set up to receive suggestions and comments from the
> public. The following are several ways to let your voice be heard:
>
> Mail your letters to:
>
> President George W. Bush
> The White House
> Washington, DC 20500
>
> Fax your letters to The White House Comments Line Fax: 1-202-456-2461
>
> To discuss these issues with The White House staff, call 1-202-456-1111
>
> To read more about Mary J. Ruwart, Ph.D. check out her Website at
> www.ruwart.com
>
> To keep up with the breaking news, check out the Life Extension website
> daily at www.LifeExtension.com
>
> “That whenever any form of government becomes destructive
> of these ends,
> it is the right of the people to alter or
> abolish it”
> Thomas Jefferson
> Declaration of
> Independence
> July 4, 1776
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