Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) today joined Stryker CEO Steve MacMillan and leading industry representatives along with U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow for a press conference to highlight America’s role as the world’s leading innovator in medical technology and the urgent need to maintain industry competitiveness. The event was hosted by the Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed), which unveiled its “Competitiveness Agenda,” a series of policy recommendations to ensure the vitality of the industry. Upton, Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, has called for streamlining the FDA approval process for new and innovative devices to keep jobs from moving overseas.
There are an estimated 420,000 Americans working in the medical device industry with some 9,000 in Michigan. The current Medical Device User Fee Act expires in September 2012. The Food and Drug Administration has not met the current performance goals outlined in the current legislation and will report their recommendations to the House Energy and Commerce Committee early next year.
“As Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, jobs are my number one priority - especially bringing jobs to Michigan,” said Upton. “While the medical device industry has flourished and created jobs despite our difficult economic times, unnecessary government regulations are now threatening American competitiveness and we are seeing exports drop and jobs move overseas. Reforming the Medical Device User Fee Act gives us an opportunity to ensure the revolutionary devices being developed by Stryker and other American firms are not delayed or kept off the market by bureaucratic red tape. These state-of-the-art devices are saving lives, lowering costs, and drastically improving the quality of life for countless folks, and we want them to be made right here in Michigan, and all across America.”
Upton believes streamlining the process of unnecessary and duplicative regulations will keep U.S. companies competitive on the global market. FDA delays are currently forcing medical device research and development, as well as new product approvals, to Europe. With design and approval shifting overseas, medical device exports have declined significantly and are expected to worsen as more devices are manufactured overseas.
