Congress investigating flu, Vioxx

The House Government Reform Committee will conduct a hearing on Nov. 17 concerning the flu vaccine shortage. Witnesses scheduled to testify include Howard Pien, president and CEO of Chiron (CHIR); Acting FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford; and Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Committee Chairman Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) spent the week in the U.K. interviewing government regulators about their oversight of CHIR's influenza vaccine manufacturing operations. Davis and four committee staff members also have met with U.K. representatives of CHIR and MedImmune (MEDI). The committee is also reviewing documents the FDA provided this week about its inspection of the CHIR facility and its interactions with the company since June 2003. ...