NCL lauds FDA approval of first treatment for low libido in women – National Consumers League

August 18, 2015

Contact: Cindy Hoang, National Consumers League, cindyh@nclnet.org or (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—Today the National Consumers League (NCL) commends the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its approval of the first-ever treatment for women’s low libido.  The drug comes nearly four decades after the condition of HSDD (Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder)—which it has been approved to treat—was recognized in scientific journals. NCL has been calling for FDA to consider the treatment option because it would be the first of its kind for women; there are 26 drugs on the marketplace available to treat male sexual dysfunction.

In October 2014 and June 2015, NCL’s Executive Director Sally Greenberg testified in support of treatments for patients suffering from HSDD. The following statement may be attributed to Greenberg: 

This is the biggest breakthrough in women’s sexual health since the advent of ‘the Pill.’ Men have 26 different drugs available to treat sexual dysfunction. Now, with this drug’s approval, women finally have one. That’s a start. We hope to see competitor treatments that will offer women suffering from HSDD the same kinds of options available to men.

We have been hoping for approval of the first-ever drug to treat HSDD for several critical reasons. Once there’s an FDA treatment available, women are less likely to purchase untested and possibly dangerous products online. The FDA’s rigorous testing ensures that drugs tested in clinical trials that include thousands of women won’t carry harmful and unknown side effects. Secondly, once a treatment is approved by the FDA there will be other companies coming forward with competitor drugs, and that gives women choices, which we strongly support. 

Approval of this therapy is monumental for so many reasons: because it validates/legitimizes female sexuality as an important component of health; it underscores the FDA’s recognition of female sexual dysfunction as among the top 20 unmet medical needs; and it acknowledges that as a condition, HSDD is not simply a psychological problem or a reflection of cultural pressure on women, but a biological condition that can be treated with an effective medication. It’s been a long time coming, but this approval is a welcomed and landmark breakthrough in women’s sexual health.

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.