A quarantined Ted Cruz proposes to speed approvals for coronavirus drugs and vaccines
Although Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas.) is quarantined at home after coming into contact with someone who tested positive for Covid-19, the lawmaker plans to introduce a bill to permit the Food and Drug Administration to approve any drug, device, or vaccine that might be endorsed by regulators in certain other countries to combat the novel coronavirus.
The legislation, which is known as reciprocity and designed to meet a public health or unmet medical need, comes as researchers around the globe scramble to test new and existing medicines in the face of a worsening outbreak that has so far infected more than 130,000 people worldwide and been blamed for nearly 4,800 deaths, according to the World Health Organization.
