The AP reports that the FDA -- "which has struggled to fulfill its mission of regulating food, drugs, and other consumer goods that make up nearly a quarter of the US economy -- does not have the expertise to forecast its own budget needs," GAO officials say. "While many lawmakers and consumer advocates have long complained that the agency lacks the staff and equipment to accomplish its mission," according to the GAO, the FDA "doesn't even have 'the data to develop a complete and reliable estimate of the resources it needs.'" FDA officials said that "they are working to get a better picture of the agency's spending and how much additional funding it needs." Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, FDA deputy commissioner, said, "We have to be able to talk about the funds we need, and how we're using the money, with more detail than FDA has in the past." He noted that the agency is already "working to keep better track of how the agency uses its funding," saying, "We've actually been working on this since we started here, but it's a big agency and it's going to take some work to get to the level of detail people want."
Show me the money ... but how much?
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