Advocacy at a Glance

Advocacy at a Glance offers you the bullet point summary of current advocacy issues associated with the goals of the Alliance for a Stronger FDA.

• Woodcock Presentation Rescheduled from August 14 to September 21.  Due to a change in Dr. Woodcock’s schedule, her presentation to the Alliance has been moved to Friday, September 21 at 9 a.m. We will have more details in the next Advocacy at a Glance. If you would like to attend, RSVP to Carrie Morgan. While we will have a room that accommodates a good-sized crowd, priority will be given to Alliance members and media.

• Senate Passes FY 19 Ag/FDA Funding as Part of 4-bill Mini-bus. When the House sent over the FY 19 Interior/Financial Services and General Government mini-bus appropriations bill, the Senate decided to add Ag/FDA and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appropriations, creating a 4-bill mini-bus. This bill was considered on the Senate floor over the last week and a final vote occurred on Wednesday, August 1. Given that the House has not yet moved the Ag/FDA and THUD bills, the House may agree with this four-bill mini-bus, but hold onto the positions taken in their committee-passed versions.

The final text of the Senate-passed bill will not be available for several days (maybe longer), while all the amendments are compiled and integrated into the bill text. However, we can report that FDA funding -- with one exception -- is the same as the committee-passed version. One amendment was accepted that related to agency funding -- directing $15 million of proposed CFSAN funding be spent on imported seafood inspections. This week’s Analysis and Commentary answers the question: what provisions were in the Senate committee-passed bill that have now been adopted by the full Senate?

• Senate Joins House in Recess; Will Return August 15. The Senate recessed Wednesday night and thereby extended its brief recess break to 2 weeks. They will reconvene on Wednesday, August 15, with the first vote scheduled late in the day. Having successfully moved two mini-bus appropriations bills, covering seven subcommittees, the Senate’s priority for August will be to pass a third, covering all of defense spending, as well as the Labor/HHS appropriations bill. If successful, the Senate will have passed nine of the 12 funding packages. The fate of State/Foreign Operations and Commerce/Justice/Science are unclear. Homeland Security is likely to be funded by CR and taken up on after the mid-term election. That bill will the vehicle for resolving disagreements over border security and the wall.

• Next Friday Update Will Be August 17. We will not be publishing next Friday (August 10), but will be back with more news and commentary the following Friday, August 17.