Every year the Allergy Advocacy Association Action Awards honor individuals that personify our program of Awareness, Alertness and Action.
Gala Will Honor 2020 Action Awards Winners
Jared Saiontz (r.) with his mother StaceyDr. S. Shahzad Mustafa, MD
Jared Saiontz and S. Shahzad Mustafa, MD win awards
By Jon Terry
October 15th, 2020
"Activists need to be change agents," says William Moyer, a founding member of the Movement for a New Society. "They work to educate, organize, and involve the general public to actively seek positive, constructive solutions to difficult problems."
This year the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has made important decisions affecting all Americans. Improving all package labelling to better informing consumers about food allergens is a major priority for our association.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent proposed guidance “Voluntary Disclosure of Sesame as an Allergen: Guidance for Industry” to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. While this voluntary guidance falls short of the mandatory sesame allergen labeling that we have been advocating for, we feel it is a promising step in the right direction. This is a result of the FDA’s 2018 request for comments from the public on sesame allergy and their review of those comments from the food allergy community.
Probably everyone has heard the expression “the squeaky wheel gets the grease.” What they may not have heard is the reason why; “because it needs it!” Congress is currently considering the FASTER Act which will, amongst other things, expand the FALCPA “Top 8” allergens to include sesame as the ninth. (FYI, FALCPA stands for Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act). Here you will find a summary of what is the FASTER ACT complied by Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE) as well as information on their Courage at Congress Campaign to encourage your legislators to co-sponsor and show their support for the FASTER Act.
After many months of activism and advocacy, important legislation is progressing through the US Congress helping central schools across America better protect and support students at risk for dangerous allergic reactions.
Allergy & Asthma Network today applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for passing the School-Based Allergies and Asthma Management Program Act, H.R. 2468 — but our work is not done!
The legislation, long a priority for Allergy & Asthma Network and a host of health and patient organizations, now heads to the U.S. Senate for consideration. The Network will continue its advocacy efforts, urging passage of the bill before the end of the year so it becomes law.
Having a potential life threating allergy impacts a person’s life in many ways. One way is the medicine you use to treat your allergy and how it is administered. Now what if the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a treatment that could make it easier to use, as in the case of dissolving epinephrine, or more convenient as in the case of at-home asthma injections, it could be game changer for allergy suffers as well as their friends and family. Read here about the efforts of two pharmaceuticals companies that are attempting to create these game changers.
An Oral Epinephrine ‘Film’ to Stop Allergic Reactions?
The hesitancy of some people to use an epinephrine auto-injector for anaphylaxis has led to a longstanding interest in developing an alternative that doesn’t involve a needle.
While efforts to develop an oral, sublingual epinephrine pill have yet to succeed, Aquestive Therapeutics, based in New Jersey, just launched a Phase 1 clinical trial of an epinephrine “film” that dissolves under the tongue. The trial, which will enroll up to 28 people, will compare the effectiveness of the film with epinephrine given by injection.
