HELP Committee Supports Reauthorizing FDA Program to Streamline Review of OTC Drugs

Lawmakers expressed bipartisan support for reauthorizing an FDA program that helps streamline the process for bringing nonprescription drugs to market during a hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee on Wednesday.

Democrats, however, questioned whether the recent workforce reduction at the agency could hamper the program's implementation, while HELP Committee Chair Sen. Bill Cassidy, MD (R-La.), criticized the agency for failing to move more drugs from prescription to over-the-counter (OTC) status.

"Prior to 2020, our ability to regulate OTC drugs hadn't been modernized in decades. It was slow, outdated, and inflexible," explained Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay, MD, JD, acting director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research and the hearing's