Recently, Congress passed U.S. Senator Rand Paul’s (R-KY) bipartisan FDA Modernization Act 2.0 that ends animal testing mandates as part of a larger bill, H.R. 2617, the 2022 year-end legislation, which President Biden signed into law on December 29, ending an outdated government mandate.
“The FDA Modernization Act 2.0 will accelerate innovation and get safer, more effective drugs to market more quickly by cutting red tape that is not supported by current science, and I’m proud to have led the charge. The inclusion of this bipartisan effort is a step toward ending the needless suffering and death of animal test subjects – which I’m glad both Republicans and Democrats can agree needs to end,” said Dr. Paul.
“The FDA Modernization Act 2.0, to eliminate an archaic and debilitating government mandate for animal testing of experimental drugs, simply would not have become law without Rand Paul’s leadership, persistence, and medical background,” said Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy. “Dr. Paul’s bipartisan bill will not only save public and private dollars by making drug screening faster, better, and more efficient, but it will also save countless human and non-human lives in the process.”
The included language ends an outdated FDA mandate that experimental drugs must be tested on animals before they are used on humans in clinical trials. It doesn’t ban animal testing outright but allows the option for drug sponsors to use alternative methods where they are suitable.
