WASHINGTON -- Congressman Vern Buchanan announced today he has introduced bipartisan legislation to end a government requirement that animal testing be used to determine a drug's effectiveness on humans. The outdated mandate yields highly imprecise results that actually can impede progress in the development of new medicines, according to experts.
"The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) Modernization Act will streamline drug development and spur innovation without resorting to inhumane and counterproductive experiments on dogs, primates and other animals, Buchanan said. "This is a win-win for science and animal welfare."
The antiquated government rule that mandates use of animals for testing dates back to 1938. This requirement is detrimental to the development of new drugs because relying on animal biology to measure test results on humans is highly inaccurate. In fact, the failure rate in translating animal studies to human clinical trials is 95 percent, according to Animal Wellness Action.
“I would like to see research move away from the animal model, not only for the animals but to promote faster delivery of cures for devastating diseases,” Buchanan said. “That means research should focus on human biology, not animal biology. Our bill does just that.”
Buchanan's co-sponsors include Reps. Elaine Luria, D-VA, Nancy Mace, R-SC, Mikie Sherrill, D-NJ, and Brendan Boyle, D-PA. The bill has been endorsed by Animal Wellness Action, the Center for a Humane Economy and the Michelson Center for Public Policy.
Rep. Luria said: “The FDA Modernization Act promotes animal welfare without compromising scientific research. There’s no reason we can’t leverage technology to adopt more compassionate standards for testing consumer drugs and other products."
Rep. Sherrill said: "Whether we’re talking about updating animal testing protocols or ensuring the expeditious approval of treatments for the next global pandemic, the FDA should always be evolving with our industry leaders. This bill will help ensure the FDA is prepared for the challenges and opportunities ahead.”
Rep. Mace said: “Scientists have known for decades animal testing is far from the best way to test the effectiveness of a new drug. Regardless, the FDA requires anyone developing a new drug to rely on outdated and inhumane animal testing techniques to get their approval.”
Rep. Boyle said: "This legislation ensures that science based methods can finally take precedence over outdated animal testing practices."
Marty Irby, executive director of the Animal Wellness Foundation said, "Representative Buchanan is again showing remarkable leadership on animal welfare issues, in this case taking aim at regulations that delay and deny patients life-saving drugs, driving up the prices for those drugs when they finally do come to market, and tormenting animals in needless tests in the process. This is a common-sense bill good for the people and animals of our nation."
Gerry R. Boss, board member of the Center for a Humane Economy and a long-time researcher in drug development, said, “This reform would allow the use of the nonclinical test methods most likely to predict how a drug will react in humans, including state of the art nonclinical models based on human biology."
Buchanan, who co-chairs the Animal Protection Caucus in Congress, is a leading advocate for protecting endangered species and ending animal cruelty, introducing and co-sponsoring dozens of important animal measures. He introduced an amendment to a government funding bill to protect endangered African lions and elephants by banning the importation of their dead carcasses into the United States to be mounted as trophies. Additionally, Buchanan introduced legislation to permanently ban the transport of horses to slaughterhouses in Mexico to be sold as a delicacy around the world with Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL).
In 2019, Buchanan’s bill turning animal cruelty into a federal crime was signed into law.
In 2018, Buchanan’s bill banning the slaughter of cats and dogs for human consumption was signed into law.
Buchanan is also a leader in animal welfare issues unique to Florida. He urged the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to withdraw its decision to weaken protections for the manatee under the Endangered Species Act and called for the designation of a critical habitat for the endangered panther, Florida’s state animal. Buchanan also successfully lobbied the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to list the Gulf of Mexico whale on the endangered species list.
