BOTHELL – ID Biomedical could provide more than 1 million doses of its flu vaccine to United States if federal regulators allow the unapproved drug to be distributed.
U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., said he has asked Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson to legally allow the injectable doses to be imported from Canada as soon as possible.
“My understanding is it would be available right away,” Inslee said Thursday. “Aside from shipping issues, it’s ready to go.”
A spokeswoman for ID Biomedical – based in Vancouver, B.C., with an office in Bothell – could not be reached for comment.
The company’s Fluviral vaccine already has been approved in Canada, and as been provided to approximately 8 million people there. Even though it hasn’t gone through the full Food and Drug Administration approval process, it could be given to Americans through the investigational new drug application process. That means, essentially, that it would be given to people in a large clinical trial.
The benefits of doing that would “far outweigh” any risks, Inslee said.
Inslee, who is just one of several politicians from several states who have urged the same thing, said federal officials told him they would try to expedite their review of the import plan. With luck, Inslee said, a decision could be made in a matter of weeks.
“Obviously, time is of the essence,” he said.
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