Prescription Drug Labeling Promotion Act of 2012
Latest action. Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Prescription Drug Labeling Promotion Act of 2012 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a working group to develop best practices on access to prescription drug labeling for the visually impaired.
Requires the working group to: (1) include equal representation of consumer and industry advocates; (2) promulgate guidance on best practices for pharmacies to ensure that blind and visually impaired individuals have safe, consistent, reliable, and independent access to the information in the labeling of prescription drugs; (3) consider the use of Braille, specified auditory means, and enhanced visual means to provide such access; and (4) consider whether there are technical, financial, manpower, or other factors that may fundamentally impact the ability of pharmacies with 20 or fewer retail locations to implement the best practices.
Directs the Commissioner of Food and Drugs (FDA) to conduct an informational and educational program to inform the public and pharmacists about such guidance and practices.
Directs the Comptroller General: (1) 18 months after such guidance and practices are published, to review pharmacy compliance and the extent to which access barriers continue; and (2) by September 30, 2016, to report on such review, including recommendations for reducing such barriers.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on February 24, 2012. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on February 24, 2012: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 112th Congress (2011-12), 283 of the 10,618 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.7 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Edward Markey (D-MA) introduced it on February 24, 2012, and 10 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 8 Democrats, 2 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 24, 2012, 5359 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 5359 days ago, on February 24, 2012.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 112th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2013 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers