News Release
HHS Creates Task Force to Encourage Medical Technology InnovationHHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced that the department is forming
an internal task force to weigh new ideas and promote new solutions to
encourage innovation in health care and to speed the development of effective
new medical technologies, such as drug and biological products and medical
devices “This task force will look for opportunities across the department to promote speedier access to new innovative medical technologies that can improve people’s health and save lives,” Secretary Thompson said. “Often, a new technology must clear several hurdles in different parts of HHS before it can reach consumers. By better coordinating this process across HHS, we can streamline the way we do business and make safe, effective medical technologies more quickly and readily available to Americans who could benefit from them.” To assist the task force’s efforts, HHS is seeking comments from the public on how to stimulate innovation in medical technologies. HHS will accept comments until August 23. A notice explaining the comment period and how to file comments will be published in the Federal Register on Monday, May 24. Electronic comments will be accepted at http://www.fda.gov/dockets/ecomments. The task force’s efforts will build on similar efforts underway at the FDA and other agencies, with a goal of improving coordination across agencies. The task force’s participants will include CDC Director Julie Gerberding, M.D.; CMS Administrator Mark B. McClellan, M.D., Ph.D.; Acting FDA Commissioner Lester M. Crawford, D.V.M., Ph.D.; and NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D. Dr. Crawford will serve as the task force’s chair. ### Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news. Last Revised: May 19, 2004 |