Screw the intellectual property rights part of this. It would allow drugs to be imported with FDA testing or approval. WTF? Granted, I think at times the FDA takes too long to approve drugs, but on the other hand they often approve drugs with side effects that are worse than what is being treated.
That being said, maybe this amendment is a poison pill to kill the main bill that it is attached to:
H.R.1256
To protect the public health by providing the Food and Drug Administration with certain authority to regulate tobacco products, to amend title 5, United States Code, to make certain... (Placed on Calendar in Senate)
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c111:4:./temp/~c111zfQQUu::
SEC. 919. USER FEES.
`(a) Establishment of Quarterly Fee- Beginning on the date of enactment of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, the Secretary shall in accordance with this section assess user fees on, and collect such fees from, each manufacturer and importer of tobacco products subject to this chapter. The fees shall be assessed and collected with respect to each quarter of each fiscal year, and the total amount assessed and collected for a fiscal year shall be the amount specified in subsection (b)(1) for such year, subject to subsection (c).
`(b) Assessment of User Fee-
`(1) AMOUNT OF ASSESSMENT- The total amount of user fees authorized to be assessed and collected under subsection (a) for a fiscal year is the following, as applicable to the fiscal year involved:
`(A) For fiscal year 2009, $85,000,000 (subject to subsection (e)).
`(B) For fiscal year 2010, $235,000,000.
`(C) For fiscal year 2011, $450,000,000.
`(D) For fiscal year 2012, $477,000,000.
`(E) For fiscal year 2013, $505,000,000.
`(F) For fiscal year 2014, $534,000,000.
`(G) For fiscal year 2015, $566,000,000.
`(H) For fiscal year 2016, $599,000,000.
`(I) For fiscal year 2017, $635,000,000.
`(J) For fiscal year 2018, $672,000,000.
`(K) For fiscal year 2019 and each subsequent fiscal year, $712,000,000.
