Please Help - Fluoroquinolone Congressional Hearing Request

We feel that there needs to be a Congressional Hearing regarding the FDA’s failure to properly warn the public of the serious adverse reactions associated with fluoroquinolone antibiotics. Doctors and patients deserve to know that the FDA wrote a report almost two years ago that states fluoroquinolone antibiotics, such as Levaquin, Cipro, and Avelox, may result in mitochondrial toxicity associated with life-ending neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s. The FDA has not disclosed this information.

More than 3,000 people have died after taking one of these antibiotics and hundreds of thousands of people have been damaged by these antibiotics, according to the FDA’s own MedWatch data. A Congressional Hearing is needed immediately to investigate these antibiotics before more people die or are damaged. We can wait no longer. These deaths and destroyed lives were preventable.

A Congressional Hearing support letter has been written that may easily be copied and pasted into emails. We are asking floxed advocates, family members, friends, co-workers, etc. to email the following Senators and staff (some of whom are members of the Senate Health Committee). Each person will send off eight emails in total. The more people who write in the better!

Click here to download Congress_Mito_Hearing_Letter in Word format or you can copy and past the letter from below. To e-mail just lick on the email address for each member of congress. Your email client should open, then just paste the letter, edit, and send!

1. Lamar Alexander (Tennessee)
Grace_Stuntz@help.senate.gov

2. Johnny Isakson (Georgia)
Jordan_Bartolomeo@isakson.senate.gov

3. Rand Paul (Kentucky)
natalie_burkhalter@paul.senate.gov

4. Tim Scott (South Carolina)
Catherine_Phillips@scott.senate.gov

5. Patty Murray (Washington)
wade_ackerman@help.senate.gov

6. Pat Roberts (Kansas)
Melissa_Fett@roberts.senate.gov

7. Senator McCain (Arizona)
David_Bennett@mccain.senate.gov

8. Senator Flake (Arizona)
Michael_Nelson@flake.senate.gov

Below is the Congressional Hearing support letter ( or click to download the Congress_Mito_Hearing_Letter in Word format) that may be copied and pasted into separate emails. Please note that the people who live in the state of a given Senator should include where they live to show constituent support, those who do not reside in a given Senator’s state should still write to each person listed, however they should not include their address. Make sure to edit the italicized sections requiring personal information.

You may title the email “Fluoroquinolone Congressional Hearing Request.”

Dear Senator,

I live in [city, state—include only if you live in the Senator’s state] and I am writing to ask you to conduct a Congressional Hearing immediately into why adequate warnings have not been placed on fluoroquinolone antibiotic labels, including Levaquin, Cipro, and Avelox.

Doctors and patients in your state deserve to know that the FDA wrote a report almost two years ago that states fluoroquinolone antibiotics, such as Levaquin, Cipro, and Avelox, may result in mitochondrial toxicity associated with life-ending neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s. The FDA has not disclosed this information.

Your constituents deserve to know that the antibiotic they took for a simple sinus infection or urinary tract infection may result in ALS, Alzheimer’s, or Parkinson’s. Who would take Levaquin, Cipro, or Avelox for a simple infection if they knew the result would be ALS? Or Alzheimer’s? Or Parkinson’s?

Already more than 3,000 people have died after taking one of these antibiotics and hundreds of thousands of people have been damaged by these antibiotics, according to the FDA’s own MedWatch data. A Congressional Hearing is needed immediately to investigate these antibiotics before more people die or are damaged. We can wait no longer. These deaths and destroyed lives were preventable.

You deserve to hear from the FDA through a Congressional Hearing, as do doctors and patients. Physicians, researchers, and victims are ready to testify.

Thank you for your concern regarding this critical issue which affects so many people in your state and throughout this country.

Respectfully,

Name—required
Email—required
Address—include only if you live in the Senator’s state (delete this line if not including address)
Phone—include only if you live in the Senator’s state (delete this line if not including phone number)

News Segments about Fluoroquinolone Antibiotics (at least 8 other Fluoroquinolone news segments under development)

September 2014

Phoenix, Arizona: Arizona Republic
http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2014/09/17/critics-demand-stronger-warnings-potent-antibiotics/15759755/

September 2014

USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/09/17/levaquin-antibiotic-side-effects/15767249/

November 2014

Phoenix, Arizona: ABC
http://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/investigations/experts-top-antibiotic-carries-hidden-side-effects-not-listed-on-the-label

November 2014

Phoenix, Arizona: NBC
http://www.azcentral.com/videos/news/local/arizona/2014/11/04/18450053/

November 2014

Detroit, Michigan: Detroit Free Press
http://www.freep.com/story/life/wellness/2014/09/17/antibiotics-warning-labels-fda/15770411/

November 14, 2014