by Deb Cupples | The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is supposed to focus on ensuring that our food and drugs are safe. We taxpayers give more than $2 billion a year to the FDA to do its job.
It's not exactly news that our FDA has gone out of its way to protect drug companies' interests at the expense of public health and safety -- as evinced by the FDA's part in scandals involving Viagra, Vioxx, Avandia, and Ketek.
Thus, it's no wonder that the FDA has a public-image problem, which agency officials recently compounded when reportedly getting caught trying to skate around federal rules while awarding a contract to a P-R firm with ties to an FDA official. The Washington Post reports:
"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration had an image problem. For months last year the agency had been pummeled by Congress for poor inspections of tainted vegetables, drugs and other products.
"FDA leaders decided to hire a contractor for a public relations campaign that would "create and foster a lasting positive public image of the agency for the American public," according to agency documents.
"A competition, as prescribed by government policy, was not held to get the lowest bid for the $300,000 contract. Instead, FDA officials came up with a plan to ensure the work would go to a Washington public relations firm with ties to the FDA official arranging the deal, according to an examination by The Washington Post.
"The plan used a circuitous route around the standard government contracting procedures. The contract was awarded in July to Alaska Newspapers Inc., a firm owned by an Alaska Native corporation that does not have to compete for federal work because it qualifies for special set-asides. The idea was for ANI to hand over the work to Qorvis Communications, the Washington firm, documents show." (WaPo)
Obviously, there's something wrong with FDA officials' thinking it's fine to use tax dollars to enrich pals -- and to break rules in the process.
An even more fundamental problem is that FDA officials used tax dollars trying to mislead us taxpayers into believing that the FDA has been doing its job well.
Instead of trying to buy a better public image, FDA officials should try to earn it: e.g., by diligently doing its job and protecting consumers, instead of promoting drug-company interests.
Related BN-Politics Posts:
* FDA's Latest Pharma-Friendly Sins
* Pharma-Paid Doctors Wrote Risky Scrips for Kids
* FDA Criticized for Bureaucrats' Bonuses
* Why Are Drug Prices so High (GAO & Other Sources)?
* Did the FDA Endanger Diabetics?
* Pharma President is Un-named Ex-Official in Jefferson Indictment
Qorvis also represents big pharma - so it's a nice deal all around for them too isn't it. http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2008/10/03/same-image-polisher-has-worked-for-fda-and-big-pharma/
Posted by: Sal | October 03, 2008 at 01:22 PM
Sal,
thanks for pointing that out!
Posted by: Deb Cupples (Buck Naked Politics) | October 03, 2008 at 11:55 PM