Health & Food Freedom: Congress at the Crossroads

Congress at the Crossroads
http://tinyurl.com/SaveOurSupplements
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   Under increasing lobbying pressure from the drug industry and the Federal bureaucracy, Congress is considering bills to increase FDA and USDA power over foods yet again. In a series of laws over the past five years, starting with what I call the "FDA Enabling Act" in 2007 (Teddy Kennedy's dying gift to the bureaucracy) the power of the central government over local food production and distribution has dramatically increased. By 2010 the Federal agencies were empowered to enter into "contracts" with state food inspectors, effectively nationalizing local food inspection, just as the local police forces have been nationalized with Federal money and control.

   These increases in Federal power are part of a general program emanating from the Administration to "seize the commanding heights" of the economy leading to what General Stubblebine has defined as "total government control" through various bills, regulations, treaties and executive orders. See: http://tinyurl.com/PushBackFree

  At the same time these centralizing bills are working their way through Congress, patriot members are offering counter proposals to protect our Health and Food Freedom. The battle is joined; the Congress is at the Crossroads... as is our Health and Food Freedom!

UPDATE: 5.24.12
BOTH DURBIN and RAND AMENDMENTS
DEFEATED
FDA Bill S.3187 Passed and Sent to the House.
The Action Moves to the House of Representatives.

Support Sen. Paul's amendment, No. 2143
To S.3187 (the FDA bill)
His Amendment would disarm the FDA, put an end to raids on natural food stores and Amish farmers, and stop FDA censorship of truthful claims of dietary supplements. 

"Mr. President, today [May 24, 2012] I'm offering an amendment to the FDA. I'm troubled by images of armed agents raiding Amish farms and preventing them selling milk directly from the cow. I think we have bigger problems in our country than sending armed FDA agents into peaceful farmers' land and telling them they can't sell milk directly from the cow.My amendment has three parts. First, it attempts to stop the FDA's overzealous regulations of vitamins, food and supplements by codifying the first amendment prohibition on prior restraint... READ MORE: http://paul.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=529

Senators Hatch and Harkin Tell the FDA:
"Don't Mess with Our Supplements!"
"The Good, the Bad, the Ugly..."
Senator Durbin's
Unnecessary Amendment 2127
(Dietary Supplement Registration provision)
May be added to the FDA bill, S.3187
Oppose that over-regulation too!

"Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) urged FDA to withdraw its New Dietary Ingredient (NDI) Draft Guidance in a letter to FDA Commissioner Hamburg... Senators Hatch and Harkin, the principal authors of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act  of 1994 (DSHEA), asked Dr. Hamburg to issue a new draft that, 'will provide needed clarification on what constitutes an NDI, but does not undermine the balance Congress struck in DSHEA to provide consumers with access to safe, affordable dietary supplement products.' ... The Senators said the draft guidance undermines DSHEA in a number of ways.."  http://www.naturalproductsinsider.com/news/2012/01/senators-hatch-harkin-call-for-ndi-guidance-redo.aspx     We now find Senator Durbin, this week, is seeking to saddle dietary supplement companies with a new registration requirement that is uneeded, since the 1994 DSHEA law already requires companies to notify the FDA about their claims. The Homeland Security laws already require manufacturers to register.     The information the Senator wants collected by the Govt under this new Amendment is already collected!     The Durbin Amendment 2127 to S.3187 is over-regulation and will simply tend to drive small companies out of business, thereby reducing consumer choice and increasing cost!

Contact Your Representatives: http://tinyurl.com/SaveOurSupplments Now addresses the FDA bill to be considered in the House Representatives.

What can we do about this?
We can educate our representatives
About these latest Congressional and FDA assaults on our access to high potency, advanced nutrition!

Please let your representatives know how you feel. After you enter your zip code on the Action Item page, you can change or add to the suggested email that will come up on the next page. Then it's just a couple mouse-clicks and your representatives will get the message!

HEALTH FREEDOM BILLS PENDING IN THE 112th CONGRESS H. R. 3380 To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act Concerning safe dietary ingredients in dietary supplements. [Changes the "grandfathering date" from 1994 to 2007, protecting additional nutrients.] [Introduced by Dr. Ron Paul] H. R. 2044 To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act concerning claims about the effects of foods and dietary supplements on health-related conditions and disease, and for other purposes. ... In General- The Federal Government may not take any action to prevent use of a claim describing any nutrient in a food or dietary supplement (as such terms are defined in section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321)) as mitigating, treating, or preventing any disease, disease symptom, or health-related condition, unless a Federal court in a final order following a trial on the merits finds clear and convincing evidence based on qualified expert opinion and published peer-reviewed scientific research that-- (1) the claim is false and misleading in a material respect; and (2) there is no less speech restrictive alternative to claim suppression, such as use of disclaimers or qualifications, that can render the claim non-misleading... H. R. 2045 To amend the Federal Trade Commission Act concerning the burden of proof in false advertising cases involving dietary supplements and dietary ingredients. ...EXEMPTIONS FROM REGULATION AS ADVERTISING- No content of any publication shall be considered advertising regulated under this Act unless the content is intended by the seller of a product to promote the sale of that product and the content includes-- `(A) the name of the product offered for sale; `(B) an express offer to sell the named product; and `(C) a purchase price for the product. No content excerpted in whole or part from a peer-reviewed scientific publication shall be considered advertising regulated under this Act. `(3) NO IMPLIED CLAIMS- In any investigation commenced by the Commission and in any adjudicative proceeding in which the Commission is a party, the Commission shall not attribute to an advertiser accused of false advertisement any advertising statement not actually made by that advertiser. `(4) NOTICE, OPPORTUNITY TO CURE, AND BURDEN OF PROOF FOR INVESTIGATION- Before the Commission authorizes an investigation of false advertisement by an advertiser of a dietary supplement or a dietary ingredient, the Commission shall send the advertiser a written `Notice of Suspected Violation and Opportunity to Cure' informing the advertiser ... ... (5) BURDEN OF PROOF FOR FALSE ADVERTISEMENT CASES- In every proceeding before a court or the Commission in which an advertiser of a dietary supplement or a dietary ingredient is charged with false advertising, the burden of proof shall be on the Commission to establish by clear and convincing evidence that the advertisement is false, that the advertisement actually caused consumers to be misled into believing to be true that which is false, and that but for the false advertising content the consumer would not have made the purchase at the price paid. If a claimed health benefit of a dietary supplement or dietary ingredient is alleged to be false advertising, the Commission must additionally establish based on expert scientific opinion and published peer-reviewed scientific evidence that the claim is false. No order adverse to the advertiser shall be entered except upon the Commission satisfying this burden of proof.'... H. R. 2908 To protect the First Amendment rights of individuals to share their experiences and perceptions of the effects of foods and dietary supplements. ...Dissemination of Testimonials- Notwithstanding the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.), the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.), and any other provision of law-- (1) no Federal official or employee may restrict dissemination of a testimonial containing a consumer's actual perception of the mitigative, preventive, or curative properties of any food or dietary supplement based on the consumer's experience with that food or dietary supplement; and (2) if a person disseminating a testimonial reasonably believes that the dissemination is covered by paragraph (1), such dissemination shall not constitute a violation of any Federal law...

Action Item
http://tinyurl.com/SaveOurSupplements