VIDEO: Lofgren statement on House floor in opposition to the Synthetic Drug Control Act

Dec. 7, 2011

WASHINGTON – Today Rep. Zoe Lofgren spoke on the House floor in opposition to H.R. 1254, the Synthetic Drug Control Act, over concerns that the bill would have negative effects on scientific research.

"When a [substance] is placed on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act it becomes difficult to obtain, not only for illegal purposes, but for researchers who wish to study its pharmaceutical and medical potential," Lofgren said. "Congress has established procedure for scheduling drugs, and it requires a scientific and medical evaluation. This bill would bypass that process."

Lofgren cites statements from university faculty about the impact of the passage of H.R. 1254:

• "The bill is an irrational simplistic response to a social problem of great complexity. As such, the world will get significantly less medical and technical help with a low probability of helping anyone with a substance abuse issue." – Warren Heideman, Ph.D., Professor, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Associate Dean of Research, School of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• "While we support restrictions on the sale of these chemicals for purposes of illicit use (such as internet or head shop sales of bath salts), scheduling so as to impede access to precursor chemicals in small quantities has the potential to seriously hamper medical research." – Neal L. Benowitz, MD, Professor of Medicine and Bioengineering & Therapeutic Sciences, Chief, Division of Clinical Pharmacology, University of California, San Francisco
• "This effort is well intentioned but it will cause more problems than it solves." – John Arnold, Faculty Director, Berkeley Center for Green Chemistry