Rep. Guthrie introduces bill to allow FDA to destroy counterfeit drug devices
BOWLING GREEN, Ky.- Rep. Brett Guthrie is speaking out about a new piece of legislation he’s sponsoring called the Safeguarding Therapeutics Act.
The Act protects American consumers from counterfeit medical devices by giving the Food and Drug Administration the authority to seize and destroy the devices, such as syringes, that could harm patients. Currently, the FDA is only permitted to destroy the actual drugs, but not the devices they may come in. Due to what Guthrie calls a “loophole,” the devices are sent back to the sender, instead of being destroyed.
“Last year, I had the opportunity to visit the International Mail Facility at John F. Kennedy Airport, and I saw firsthand the dangers of counterfeit medical devices being smuggled into the United States,” said Guthrie. “
Democratic Rep. Eliot Engel of New York is sponsoring the legislation with Guthrie.
