Simply put the amount of testing needed to be done on these drugs is incredible.
However it is ultimately necessary, without proper testing something extremely harmful could be put on the market.
I wish I remember the name of the weight loss drug that ended up breaking down the proton flow in ATP synthase and all the energy was instead released into the body. People were losing weight because energy couldnt be stored as fat anymore and instead was released as heat. They ended up dying of incredible fevers.
http://hegemony.wordpress.com/2006/12/09/lose-weight-fast-or-how-to-kill-yourself-in-one-easy-step/
Now this is obviously a harmful substance but there are plenty of other things out there that can kill or harm you and we need to be absolutely sure new drugs are safe!
The FDA is one of the few govt programs I agree with and wouldn't mind expanding.
Also, Thalidomide, a drug from Britain for morning sickness, led to some severely deformed babies. IMO, extensive testing is a good idea.
Botox for example. It’s not been ok’d by FDA for this purpose yet...but at U of M they use it for brain injured people who are severely contracted. And it works.
So sometimes a drug is used for one thing and they discover it works in another area