By Troy Zimmerman, Vice President of the National Kidney Foundation

Most Americans are familiar with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and its role in protecting our health, but did you know FDA regulates more than 20 cents of every consumer dollar we spend?  In addition to regulating food and prescription drugs, FDA oversees medical devices, dietary supplements, cosmetics, pet foods and many other products whose safe use we take for granted every day.

The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is a member of the 180 member Alliance for a Stronger FDA, whose sole focus is securing annual funding (“appropriations”) by Congress for FDA activities.  On April 19, FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf met with the Alliance to discuss challenges and priorities for the agency.  I represent NKF as Vice President of the Alliance’s Board of Directors, and had the honor of introducing the Commissioner.

Dr. Califf’s comments focused on the knowledge revolution that is occurring and opportunities for improved patient care.  This includes precision therapies for patient subgroups, organ replacement, wearable technologies, and computation and analysis of data.  He emphasized the need for partnerships with patients, like you, as new therapies are proposed, tested, and analyzed.

With continued efforts by the FDA Alliance to develop and expand strong bipartisan support in Congress, we are optimistic that the agency will receive the necessary resources to support further potential scientific breakthroughs for patients.