WASHINGTON, DC - Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) today issued the following statement after House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) announced that the House of Representatives will soon vote on a Senate bill giving patients the ‘right to try.’
“Throughout this process, our goal was to ensure patients who had exhausted all other options had the right to try investigational treatments and therapies that gave them a fighting chance. We aimed to build upon Senator Ron Johnson’s (R-WI) hard work, and I am proud of the bill passed by the House in March. Sadly, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) chose to block sick patients from access to investigational drugs. It is time for the House to do what Senate Democrats won’t and send a right-to-try bill to the President’s desk, bringing hope to terminally-ill patients across the country. I applaud President Trump and Vice President Pence for their tireless support for right-to-try legislation and the patients whose lives hang in the balance."
