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Monday, November 24, 2014

The Saatchi Bill, or, How England Could Become Quack Paradise

"Hi. I'm Lord Maurice Saatchi, and I'm trying to help quacks."
The other day, I wrote an open letter to members of the various state legislatures in the United States about so-called "right to try" laws. These laws purport to make it easier for terminally ill patients to seek out and obtain treatment with experimental drugs. The reality is that the laws leave patients in the lurch. State right to try laws simply create false hopes for patients and leave them to take on incredible risks while giving up some of their rights to legal redress. So far, five states have passed right to try laws without any serious critique by legislators. To some degree, I don't blame them. Who wants to deny a patient the right to try anything to prolong their life? Yet those legislators who pass these laws are being far more cruel than any who vote these laws down.

But if you think state right to try laws in the United States are bad, take a look at the United Kingdom's Medical Innovation Bill (HL Bill 48 [full text]), also known as the Saatchi Bill, after its sponsor, Lord Maurice Saatchi. As with right to try laws, the intent of the Saatchi Bill is well-meaning, but the end result is likely to be far more harmful for patients than imagined by the bill's supporters.

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

An Open Letter to State Congress Members on Right to Try Laws

Dear Members of Congress,

"Right to try" laws, that is, laws designed to purportedly make it easier for terminally ill patients to gain access to unapproved, experimental drugs, have been in the news quite a bit recently. Several state legislatures have overwhelmingly supported these types of bills, with little or no opposition, let alone serious, critical examination. Although advocates of these laws claim to have the rights and interests of terminal patients in mind, much of the legislation, and the long-term consequences, are likely to do more to benefit unscrupulous companies and hucksters while doing little to help, or even increasing the harm to, patients in great need, not to mention legitimate companies.

The driving premise behind right to try laws is that terminally ill patients have nothing to lose by trying unproven treatments, and that they ought to have the right to gain access to those treatments without undue burden. A dominant view among right to try proponents is that the Food and Drug Administration, and the various regulations they enforce, create inappropriate barriers to the timely release of potentially life-saving drugs. Advocates believe that earlier access will save lives, coupled with the belief that the government should not interfere with a patient's right to decide what treatments they wish to pursue.

While right to try laws seem, on their surface, to do nothing but benefit patients, they will very likely fail to do so, and perhaps even harm patients, for a number of reasons.