June 16, 2023: NCHR responds to EPA’s request for public comments on the new emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles. We strongly urge the EPA to strengthen the proposed standards by requiring 100% zero-emission sales by 2035 in the final rule to protect public health and set the United States on a path to a zero-emissions future.
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NCHR Comment on USPSTF Draft Research Plan on Weight Loss Intervention
June 14, 2023: Obesity affects nearly half of US adults (42%) and is extremely costly to the US healthcare system, costing $173 billion in 2019. We responded to USPSTF’s request for public comments regarding their research plan, which is aimed at evaluating which pharmaceutical and behavioral treatments for obesity are proven to improve the health of adults, as well as any risks associated with those interventions.
Read More »Patient, Consumer, and Public Health Coalition Comment to CMS on CT Quality Measures Included in the Proposed Rule for the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting (IQR) Program
June 9, 2023: We support this CT quality measure because it establishes a floor and a ceiling to provide an optimal level of radiation exposure for imaging for numerous different conditions, without reducing the diagnostic benefits of those scans.
Read More »NCHR Comments on EPA Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances National Primary Drinking Water Regulation
May 30, 2023: We agree that this proposed rule will improve public health, reducing cancer, heart disease, stroke, low birth weight, and other harms to adults and children. However, we have several recommendations to improve the proposed rule. The PFAS limit should be changed to 2 parts per trillion (ppt) and the EPA needs more explicit limits to prevent a weakening of these regulations. Finally, companies that produce PFAS should bear the financial burden.
Read More »NCHR Comments on the FDA Draft Guidance on Clinical Trial Considerations to Support Accelerated Approval of Oncology Therapeutics
May 26, 2023: FDA draft guidance contained numerous recommendations that would improve the quality of research submitted in support of accelerated approval for oncology drugs. However, we recommended the FDA explicitly specify that studies need to have a majority of patients enrolled prior to receiving accelerated approval and that they advise against the use of single-armed trials.
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