Drug Safety

Recently, concerns have been raised about the ability of the FDA to ensure the safety of drugs marketed to American consumers. I believe there is a clear need for post-marketing monitoring. Studying the comparative effectiveness of medications can ensure the use of the most appropriate and safe treatment for a specific condition. I pushed for inclusion of comparative effectiveness studies in the Medicare Modernization Act, and one of the first studies to be carried out under this provision is a systematic review of Cox-2 drugs, like Vioxx. I believe that the information from comparative effectiveness studies will assist physicians and patients in selecting the best treatment and help reduce inappropriate uses of treatments that pose unnecessary safety risks to patients.