Health Groups Say Right-to-Try Could Do ‘More Harm than Good’

A group of non-profits and activist organizations, including the American Lung Association, National Health Council and National Organization for Rare Disorders, urged lawmakers in the House of Representatives not to pass proposed right-to-try legislation.

The group claims that the bills, “which remove the FDA from the initial approval process for accessing an investigational therapy outside of a clinical trial,” aren’t likely to improve access to investigational therapies.

The 38 organizations representing patients with serious and life-threatening diseases wrote to House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) detailing their concerns with the legislation — S.204, H.R.878 and H.R. 1020 — and stating their support for patient access to unapproved therapies.

The letter claims that right-to-try legislation does not bring about policy changes that would afford patients greater access to promising investigational therapies and could “do more harm than good.”