WASHINGTON (CAP) - FDA officials held a press conference yesterday to address concerns regarding a recent meningitis outbreak blamed on tainted pharmaceuticals.
"We're sorry about the 'steroid injections' debacle," spokesman Brian Navez told the press. "We feel really bad about that whole thing."
Navez suggested that the FDA's annual budget has failed to keep pace with the growing number of products introduced into the marketplace each year.
"This morning alone we received applications for the approval of three new drugs developed to treat erectile dysfunction, and one snack cracker developed to treat erectile dysfunction," he said.
Looming budget cuts have intensified the agency's difficulties. "In my district, we've all actually been sharing one computer," Navez admitted.
Regulatory officials have raised concerns in recent years that the FDA's focus has become too broad for effective regulation.
"At this point it's like, do you guys want to know if this new eyelash-thickening serum is going to give you seizures, or do you want us to keep rats out of your kids' chicken nuggets?" Navez asked in closing. "Because we can't do both."
- Molly Schoemann
Contributing Writer