Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., told Newsmax on Wednesday that a "cozy relationship" between the Food and Drug Administration and pharmaceutical companies might have contributed to the agency's failure to act on a popular but ineffectual drug used for nasal decongestion.
The FDA ruled earlier this year that phenylephrine is ineffective when used as a nasal decongestant, but that came about 10 years after experts first began questioning the drug's effectiveness.
Harris, appearing on "National Report," questioned why the FDA failed to act sooner, wondering if it was due to a "cozy relationship between the FDA and some of these manufacturers."
"I don't know why the FDA took so long, the evidence has been there for over 10 years," said Harris, a former anesthesiologist and a member of the GOP Doctors Caucus. "We have to get to the bottom of why the FDA has allowed an ineffective decongestant to be available on the market for 10 years when pseudoephedrine, which is what it replaces, [is] effective [and] still available, usually behind the counter."
Harris added: "We have to find out whether there's this revolving door between the FDA and the pharmaceutical industry … the regulators who become drug company employees and vice versa, we have to find out whether that's behind it."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.