FDA Generic Drug Funding Sees Little Change in Fiscal 2006 Budget

One of the FDA's major goals for 2005 and 2006 is to speed marketing approval times for generic drugs, but the agency will have to accomplish that task without much of an increase in funding for its generic drug program.

President Bush's proposed fiscal 2006 budget calls for the FDA to receive approximately $56.2 million in generic drug resources -- the same figure it received in the fiscal 2005 budget. The $56.2 million request includes funds for both the Office of Generic Drugs (OGD) and the Office of Regulatory Affairs' generic drug activities.

An FDA spokeswoman said the OGD was still awaiting its operating budget estimate for fiscal 2006, but she said the OGD's total "resources" for fiscal 2006 under the proposed budget are $28.9 million, which is a slight increase from $27.2 million in fiscal 2005.

Industry observers questioned whether that level of funding would be enough for the OGD, especially in light of the agency's desire to shorten approval times.