Opinion: Right-to-try legislation offers false hope and would endanger patients

With Congress back from its December recess, the House of Representatives is facing mounting pressure from multiple quarters, including Vice President Mike Pence and conservative groups funded by Charles and David Koch, to pass so-called “right-to-try” legislation that would create a dangerous, uncharted pathway for patients to access experimental medications. Last summer, the Senate passed such legislation — which my organization, Public Citizen, and other patient safety advocates have dubbed the “False Hope Act.” In the House, however, the bill has so far has encountered surprisingly strong headwinds.

As a and now as director of a research-based advocacy group that for more than four decades has worked to strengthen patient safety, I also have a deep appreciation of the essential role that federal requirements play in protecting vulnerable patients from harm and exploitation that may result from exposure to unproven experimental drugs.