FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, April 7, 2023
Today’s decision in the case of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM) v. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is another infringement on the patient-physician relationship by allowing a judge to restrict access to an FDA-approved medication.
Patients must be able to depend on their physicians to help them make critical decisions about their personal health. Physicians must be able to practice medicine that is informed by their years of medical education, training, experience and the available evidence.
The health care community relies on agencies like the FDA to ensure the safety and efficacy of treatments available to patients. This decision sets a dangerous precedent of allowing the rigorous drug evaluation process to be circumvented, affecting the entire country’s access to a medication or regimen. We must not allow those without medical training and knowledge to interfere with this process.
The AAFP will continue to advocate for everyone’s right to health care and oppose any governmental interference in the confidential relationship between patient and physician. Patients must be free to make their own medical decisions, physicians must be able to practice evidence-based medicine, and regulatory experts must be allowed to ensure the safety and efficacy of drugs without interference.
***
About the American Academy of Family Physicians
The AAFP is the largest national association of family physicians, representing 128,300 physicians and medical students. Family medicine’s cornerstone is an ongoing, personal patient-physician relationship focused on impactful care for people of all ages, races and genders across all medical conditions. The AAFP supports every stage of a family physician's career and provides evidence-based resources, advocacy and community to empower family medicine. To learn more, visit aafp.org. For information about health care, medical conditions and wellness, please visit the AAFP’s patient education website, familydoctor.org.