Congress Seeking to Undermine Your Health Freedom

[Guest guest]

http://capwiz.com/nnfa/issues/alert/?alertid=3098131 & type=CO%20Don't Let Congress Overturn the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 Because the Food and Drug Administration has failed to fully uphold the law, Congress is looking into making changes that will undermine many of the freedoms that American consumers of dietary supplements hold dear. SUPPORT S. 1538 No more excuses from the Food and Drug Administration! Give the FDA the resources it needs to implement DSHEA!This bill will eliminate the Food and Drug Administration's favorite excuses that it doesn't have enought staff, money or power to regulate supplements. The FDA has fallen short when it comes to enforcing the law. Support research that validates the safety, effectiveness and quality of dietary supplements.Because dietary supplements come from natural ingredients, they can't be patented. While this insures that these products are readily—and affordably — available, it takes away the ability of manufacturers to recoup research costs. The bill doubles the funding given to the Office of Dietary Supplements to expand research and consumer information about these products. Hold the government accountable for its actions.This bill will require the FDA to file annual reports to Congress about how they're regulating dietary supplements. If they fail in their responsibilities to fully implement the law, they'll be held accountable. OPPOSE S. 722 The Food and Drug Administration must not be granted new and unprecedented authority to subject safe and beneficial products to additional and unnecessary scrutiny.This bill would subject nearly all vitamins, minerals, herbal products and other supplements to a level of scrutiny that is both unwarranted and unnecessary. Products that have been used safely for hundreds – and in some cases, thousands – of years would be subject to clinical evaluation using standards that are at the complete discretion of the FDA. Click here to view S. 722. The government must not be allowed to limit the freedom of choice of American consumers when it comes to their health.By questioning the safety of any dietary supplement that receives even one complaint, hundreds of products that have been safely and beneficially used could be removed from the marketplace. Under this new legislation, the FDA has complete discretion to make this determination, regardless of whether the product was used under conditions cautioned against by the manufacturer on the label. The government must not be allowed to single-out dietary supplements.By almost every measure, and by a wide margin, dietary supplements can be used more safely than conventional foods and OTC drugs. Yet this legislation exempts foods in these product categories from being classified as stimulants. Specifically, the bill unfairly excludes the most common "stimulant" ingredient in foods – caffeine. TAKE ACTION NOW! This bill could be added to existing Senate legislation at any time. We need you to take two vital steps: 1) immediately let your Senators know that you support S. 1538 and ask them to co-sponsor the bill, and 2) ask them to oppose S. 722. Call your Senators now. To reach your Senators' offices, call them either through the Capitol Hill switchboard at (202) 224-3121 or directly at their Washington, D.C. or local offices. To find contact information for your elected officials, simply click on the Elected Officials link above. When you reach your Senator's office, ask to speak with the staff member in charge of health-related issues. E-mail your Senators now. Simply enter your ZIP code in the "Take Action Now" button above to locate your senators, make any changes you feel necessary to the sample letter, and click "submit." A copy of your letter will be sent to the two U.S. Senators from your state. A copy of the letter will also be sent to you confirming which Senators received the letter.