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Article: FDA (United States Food and Drug Administration)
- Article from:
- Encyclopedia of Espionage, Intelligence, andSecurity
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2004 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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FDA (United States Food and Drug Administration)
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a Department of Health and Human Services agency, regulates the development, sale, and distribution of food products, prescription and over-the-counter drugs, cosmetics, and medical equipment. The FDA's reach is so extensive that one-fifth of all consumer dollars spent in the U.S. purchase a product regulated by the FDA. The goal of the FDA is to protect consumers by ensuring the safety of food and drug products sold in the U.S.
The FDA traces its history to 1862, when President Abraham Lincoln created a chemistry division under the Department of Agriculture. Congress created the modern FDA in ...