President Donald Trump urged the Food and Drug Administration to accelerate its drug approval process during his Tuesday night address to a joint session of Congress, reports STAT.
President Trump called the agency's current approval process "slow and burdensome" and said it "keeps too many advances … from reaching those in need," according to the report.
During his speech, the president noted that Tuesday was Rare Disease Day. He shared the story of Megan Crowley, who was in attendance as one of the first lady's guest at the joint session. Megan has Pompe disease, a rare and life-threatening condition that leads to muscle and respiratory damage, according to the report.
"Megan's dad, John, fought with everything he had to save the life of his precious child. He founded a company to look for a cure and helped develop the drug that saved Megan's life," President Trump said.
"Today she is 20 years old and a sophomore at Notre Dame. If we slash the restraints, not just at the FDA but across our government, then we will be blessed with far more miracles like Megan," the president continued.
While President Trump has called for a deregulated FDA and faster drug approvals since he first hit the campaign trail, he has not yet released a plan to achieve these goals, reports STAT.
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