WASHINGTON, D.C., December 7, 2006 — The U.S. Senate today passed S 3546, the “Dietary Supplement and Nonprescription Drug Consumer Act,” which would require manufacturers to notify the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of all serious adverse events (AEs) for dietary supplements and over-the-counter drugs (OTCs) reported to them. The bill will now proceed to the House of Representatives.

Statement by Steven M. Mister, President and CEO:

“CRN applauds the Senate for passing this important piece of legislation that will benefit consumers as well as responsible industry. More than 150 million Americans use dietary supplement products and those consumers deserve to know that if they report a serious adverse event they believe may be associated with a supplement product, that the regulatory body that oversees the supplement industry will be made aware of that report. We believe that ultimately such a system will highlight the strong safety record of dietary supplements. CRN strongly encourages the House of Representatives to consider the Senate-passed bill and quickly enact this legislation. We urge Congress to make this legislation a reality.

“Additionally, we thank Senators Hatch, Harkin, Durbin, Enzi and Kennedy, as well as their staff, for their hard work on this legislation.”

Note to Editor: The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), founded in 1973, is a Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing dietary supplement industry ingredient suppliers and manufacturers. CRN members voluntarily adhere to a strong code of ethics, comply with dosage limits and manufacture dietary supplements to high quality standards under good manufacturing practices.