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State 'Right To Try' Acts: A Good Start, But A Federal Act Is Necessary, Ellen A. Black

Law Faculty Scholarship

In an effort to help terminally ill patients bypass the FDA's arduous, time-consuming approval process and have quicker access to potentially life-saving drugs, states across the country have passed "right to try" acts. These state acts allow a terminally ill patient the right to access an investigational drug that has completed initial safety testing, known as Phase I, but that has not been approved by the FDA. The reasoning behind these acts is that terminally ill patients, with the guidance and counsel of their physicians, should have the choice whether to pursue an unapproved drug, rather than placing their fate …