Heidi Alexander: “I see the Senator from Louisiana. I know she expects to speak about 5:30. I want to say to her through the Chair I will…”

“I see the Senator from Louisiana. I know she expects to speak about 5:30. I want to say to her through the Chair I will be finished by then. Fungal Meningitis I see the Senator from Connecticut I believe is still here. I compliment him on his participation this morning in a hearing in which we both participated. It was a sad hearing, really. It was about the fungal meningitis--the Senator from Minnesota was there as well--the fungal meningitis outbreak that in our State, Tennessee, has become a nightmare. It has claimed thirteen lives, 81 very ill in many cases, and a thousand others who worry they might become ill. It became obvious as we went through the discussion that something, incredibly, slipped through the cracks. We have more than 60,000 what I would call drugstores, pharmacies in the country; maybe more than a thousand in Tennessee. Many of them are doing this pharmaceutical compounding. You go in and get a prescription filled. They might adjust the prescription, or an FDA-approved drug based upon your prescription. That is normal and necessary. Then over here on the other side are the big manufacturers of drugs. As the Senator from Connecticut has pointed out, they are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration.…”