The Claim: The Senate Requires All Dietary Supplements to Be Regulated and Approved by the FDA
In April, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Mike Braun, R-Ind., presented “the 2022 law on the list of dietary supplements”, which would require supplement manufacturers to list their products with the Food and Drug Administration. Social media users are now misinterpreting the bill’s effects on FDA authority.
“BREAKING: Senate demands that all dietary supplements be regulated and approved by the FDA,” reads a October 26 Instagram post. “Right now, herbal medicine is a supplement that they’re trying to ban herbs.”
The post garnered over 800 likes in two days. Similar iterations were shared on instagram.
The allegation is false. The bill does not increase FDA authority over dietary supplements. This increases transparency on how the supplements are made.
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USA TODAY has reached out to the user who shared the complaint for comment.
Bill does not increase FDA authority over dietary supplements
The objective of the bill is to increase the transparency and availability of information on dietary supplements, according to the text of the invoice. This would create a nationwide electronic consumer database listing information such as ingredients, serving sizes and safety warnings.
Zacharie Riddle, a spokesperson for Braun, told USA TODAY in an email that the claim was false. Referenced riddle an information sheet released by Braun’s office, which clarifies how the measure would simply grant the FDA authority to create and maintain the electronic database.
The bill “would not grant the Agency new authority to administratively remove dietary supplements (or ingredients) from the market,” according to the fact sheet.
Fact check: False claim that the FDA said vaccines are linked to heart attacks and deaths
An amended version of the billwhat was temporarily included and then deleted of the FDA user fee package proposed by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, added language to say something similar.
“Nothing in this section shall be construed … to grant the Secretary authority to require the approval of a dietary supplement before it is marketed,” the amended version of the bill states.
The Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, amended in 1994, allows the FDA to inspect the quality of dietary supplements and monitor reports of adverse effects. This does not allow the FDA to approve supplements before they hit the market. The law is the current law.
Our opinion: False
Based on our research, we rate the claim that the Senate requires all dietary supplements to be regulated and approved by the FDA to be FALSE. The bill does not increase FDA authority over dietary supplements. This increases transparency on how the supplements are made.
Our fact-checking sources:
- Senator Dick Durbin, April 26 Durbin and Braun Introduce Legislation to Improve Safety and Ensure Transparency in the Dietary Supplement Industry
- Congress, April 26, S.4090 – Dietary Supplements List Act of 2022
- Congress, May 26, S.4348 – FDASLA Act of 2022
- Senator Mike Braun, accessed October 28, Dietary Supplements List Act 2022
- US Food & Drug Administration, June 2 FDA 101: Dietary Supplements
- Senator Dick Durbin, May 18 Durbin applauds inclusion of important dietary supplement provisions in bipartisan Senate committee’s FDA user fee package
- Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society, July 14 Burr Presents Lean User Fee Bill
- Zacharie Riddle, October 30, email exchange with USA TODAY
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