FDA fail contd.

Food and Drug Administration officials have finalized guidelines that make it easier for pharmaceutical companies to use medical journal articles to promote drugs for unapproved uses.

The final guidelines, which have been criticized by some lawmakers as too lenient, allow companies to distribute articles about their products to doctors -- even when they involve uses that have not been federally approved.

The FDA document, posted online Monday, comes just days before the Bush administration turns over power to President-elect Obama's government.

Score 1 for the Big Pharma moles inside the FDA

"In the final hours of this administration, political appointees at FDA have given drug companies a long-coveted parting gift," said Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee.

"This fundamentally undermines the requirement that companies prove to FDA that each new use is safe and effective. I hope this policy will be carefully re-examined by the new administration," added Waxman, a California Democrat.