FederalDaily - August 7, 2007
House Moves to End FDA Financial Waivers
The House adopted a measure to stop the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) practice of granting conflict-of-interest
waivers to scientists who have ties to drug companies and who also vote on agency drug-safety advisory
committees. The measure, which was included in H.R. 3161 (the FDA FY 2008 spending bill), is tougher
than an FDA reform bill that the House previously had passed, said Michael Jacobson, executive director
of the consumer watchdog Center for Science in the Public Interest. That reform bill would have allowed
a single waiver—also called an exemption—per meeting, while the spending measure eliminates
them altogether, Jacobson said in an Aug. 3 statement. The waiver process has cast a cloud over FDA
safety decisions on Vioxx and other drugs, Jacobson noted. “For far too long the FDA has waived
its own conflict-of-interest rules and let scientists sit in judgment of products made by companies
that have funded those scientists’ work,” Jacobson said. To see more, go to: www.cspinet.org/new/200708031.html
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Bill Would Safeguard Benefits for Returning Federal Retirees
A new Senate bill would allow federal retirees to return to work without incurring any reduction in
their retirement benefits. The legislation, the Part-time Reemployment of Federal Annuitants bill,
was introduced Aug. 3 by co-sponsors Sens. Susan M. Collins, R-Maine, John Warner, R-Va., and George
V. Voinovich, R-Ohio. If the bill becomes law, it would provide an easy way for retirees to return
to the federal work force rather than obtain an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) dual-compensation
waiver, said OPM Director Linda Springer. OPM supports the measure. “Many federal retirees would
welcome the opportunity to continue serving their nation.” Springer said. “The Collins-Warner-Voinovich
bill provides a way to keep their valuable talent at work for the American people and benefits new
entrants in the federal work force because of the rehired annuitants’ experience and insight.” To
see more, go to: www.opm.gov/news/opm-applauds-introduction-of-parttime-reemployment-of-federal-annuitants-bill,1212.aspx
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PRC Official Testifies on USPS Consolidation Efforts
In designing an upgrade of its nationwide mail-delivery network, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) failed
to properly consider service implications while planning for elements of its Evolutionary Network Design
(END) program, a Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) official told Congress. John D. Waller, PRC director
of rates, analysis and planning, testified before the House Government Reform subcommittee on the Federal
Workforce, Postal Service and the District of Columbia. A serious flaw in the END program, Waller said,
was that consolidation efforts were focused on moving work from smaller plants into larger plants,
rather than from less productive plants into more productive plants. Also, Waller noted that transportation
issues were not adequately considered in the network development plans. American Postal Workers Union
President William Burrus noted that Waller’s testimony reflects earlier complaints made by the
union. “This testimony confirms our members’ criticism of the USPS plan for network realignment,” Burrus
said on Aug. 3. “It echoes and reinforces our fundamental objections.” To see more, go
to: http://apwu.org/news/webart/2007/webart-0774-consol-prctestimony-070802.htm
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