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Source: Congress.gov
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We're going to start. You good? All right. This hearing of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform will come to order. I want to welcome everyone here today. Without objection, the chair may declare a recess at any time. I apologize for my laryngitis. We're going to try to fight our way through this, so I'll recognize myself for the purpose of making an opening statement. Again, welcome to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Today we will examine solutions to ensure the Food and Drug Administration keeps our nation's food and drug supply safe for all Americans. There might not be another federal agency that more profoundly impacts every American's daily life than the FDA. The FDA oversees the safety of the food, drugs, and medical devices we rely on. These responsibilities make it a key pillar of public health in the United States. But Americans are not getting healthier. Americans' life expectancy is four years less than other developed countries, despite spending more than any other country on health care. Six in 10 Americans suffer from chronic disease. One in five Americans live with a mental illness. Nearly 20 percent of America's children are considered obese. Twenty percent of American children. So you would think the FDA under the Biden administration would have prioritized making Americans healthier, right? Wrong. President Biden's FDA pushed burdensome gender identity requirements on clinical trials that made compliance more expensive. They turned a blind eye to the Chinese Communist Party targeting our children by flooding our streets with illicit tobacco and nicotine products. They neglected infant formula facility inspections that led to mothers and fathers across the country being unable to buy the formula their children needed. And they failed to work hand in hand with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to root out illicit pharmaceuticals, food, tobacco, and CBD.
We are facing a national epidemic of chronic disease, mental health, and obesity, and the FDA under the previous administration sat on its hands. Thankfully, President Trump and Secretary Kennedy are taking action to make America healthy again. Soon after his return to office, President Trump signed an executive order removing unscientific pseudoscience compliance burdens for clinical trials. The FDA recently restarted approvals of safer alternatives to traditional tobacco products, and I'm hopeful more will come soon to bring greater clarity to the market. Secretary Kennedy announced Operation Stork Speed, which will provide families with access to safe infant formula for their babies and prevent shortages going forward. And President Trump's efforts to re-secure the southern border have returned law enforcement's ability to stop the influx of illicit pharmaceuticals, food, tobacco, and CBD coming into our country. This committee has spent years investigating failures at FDA, and our findings are clear. The Biden administration stifled innovation with red tape and put bureaucrats before health of the nation. Reform is essential. The FDA must prioritize innovation, safety and the health of all Americans. The FDA needs better systems to identify and address drug shortages. Quick approval of innovative medicines and techniques identified with AI in support of President Trump's promise to cure cancer is a necessity. The FDA must work with food producers to make our food healthier while not offending supply chains. Incentivizing domestic manufacturing of pharmaceuticals is essential to improving the safety of prescription drugs and will enable more research. Clearly and effectively regulating hemp products will reduce confusion and prevent intoxicants and poisonous contaminants from infiltrating the market.
These examples are just scratching the surface of the dysfunction and failures within the FDA. Today, I'm hopeful we can take a deep dive to better understand how we can improve the FDA to make Americans healthier. I now yield to the ranking member for his opening statement. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Today's hearing comes at a critical moment for public health and safety. All Americans should be able to trust that our government is working to ensure their food and medicine will be safe and affordable. But over the past two months, the Trump administration has purged thousands of FDA workers, putting this essential mission and American lives at risk.
Last week, the administration purged 10,000 people at HHS, including 3,500 FDA employees. This was on top of a purge of approximately 1,000 FDA workers in February.
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