Sen. Paul Wellstone
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Device industry loses a staunch advocate of neurological disease R&D funding, regulatory reforms and mental health parity with the death of the Minnesota Democrat in an Oct. 25 plane crash. As a member of the Senate HELP Committee, Wellstone supported the "Medical Device User Fee & Modernization Act" and introduced the "Medical Technology, Public Health & Innovation Act" of 1995, an FDA reform bill addressing Class III device issues. More recently, Wellstone raised concerns with FDA 510(k) regulation of implanted medical devices during incoming FDA Commissioner Mark McClellan's confirmation hearing...