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President Kennedy signs the Drug Amendments of 1962
As a result of the narrowly avoided tragedy from thalidomide, Senator Estes Kefauver (5th from right above) re-introduced his bill. On October 10 President Kennedy signed the Drug Amendments of 1962, also known as the Kefauver-Harris Amendments. These Amendments required drug manufacturers to prove to the FDA that their products were both safe and effective prior to marketing. They also required that all antibiotics be certified, and gave FDA control over prescription drug advertising. With the new law, the review of antibiotic NDAs was transferred from the Division of New Drugs to the Division of Antibiotics. In May 1961, the designation "Division" replaced "Branch."
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