Congress Gives Dying Patients Easier Access to Unproven Drugs
- House approves right-to-try bill endorsed by President Trump
- Measure affects patients who have exhausted treatment options
This article is for subscribers only.
Terminally ill patients would get access to experimental drugs even without the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s permission under a measure approved by Congress that’s strongly backed by President Donald Trump.
After fits and starts over the past several months, the House on Tuesday passed by a 250-169 vote a version of the bill deemed “right to try” that the Senate unanimously approved in August. The legislation now heads to Trump, who touted the measure in his first State of the Union address in January. His interest stems from a push by Vice President Mike Pence, who championed the initiative when he was governor of Indiana.