Lawmaker claims FDA pressured safety official not to act on Vioxx

WASHINGTON (CBS.MW) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration reportedly pressured FDA whistleblower David Graham to leave his post in the Office of Drug Safety in retaliation for Graham's recent charges that cast doubt on FDA's drug safety system. Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., charged Friday.

Stupak said:
(1) "If these reports are true, then this latest action is out of line and may very well be illegal"
(2) "The public's interest is not served when [Graham][ is asked to leave for doing his job," the lawmaker said. However, Stupak did not identify in the letter the source of the reports about FDA's actions.
(3) "Your treatment of Dr. Graham undoubtedly has had a chilling effect on the willingness of FDA employees to 'speak up and disagree' when they believe the public's health is at risk"
(4)"FDA managers had posed as whistleblowers, attacking Dr. Graham's credibility in an effort to discourage the Government Accountability Project from taking Graham as a client."

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