1960s Timeline

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President Kennedy Signs New Drug Bill

Oct. 10, 1962 - President Kennedy signed a new drug bill today that he said would help provide safe and more effective drugs to the...

FDA Says Some U.S. Mothers Took Thalidomide

Sept. 13, 1962 - The Food and Drug Administration said today it had reports that at least 10 deformed babies had been born in this...

Thalidomide Caused 10,000 Birth Deformities in West Germany

Aug. 29, 1962 - The West German Federal Health Ministry announced today that the sleep-inducing drug Thalidomide had caused about 10,000...

Mrs. Finkbine Is Permitted an Abortion in Sweden

Aug. 17, 1962 - Mrs. Sherri Finkbine of Phoenix, Ariz., won permission today in Stockholm, Sweden, for a legal abortion. The three-member...

JFK Presents Dr. Francis O. Kelsey with Award for Distinguished Service

Aug. 7, 1962 - At a White House ceremony today, NASA Administrator James Webb introduced Dr. Frances O. Kelsey to President Kennedy...

Dr. Kelsey, Who Blocked Sale of Thalidomide Here, Honored by the President

Aug. 7, 1962 - Dr. Frances Oldham Kelsey, who blocked marketing of the drug Thalidomide in the United States, pronounced herself...

Dr. Kelsey of FDA, Who Refused to Authorize Thalidomide Sale in U.S., to Receive Award

Aug. 4, 1962 - Dr. Frances Oldham Kelsey (pictured before a Senate subcommittee on Wednesday) was authorized today to receive the highest...

No Established Procedure for Disposing of Thalidomide

Aug. 1, 1962 - There is no established procedure for persons who find the drug Thalidomide in their medicine cabinets to “turn it in.”...

President Proposes Stronger Drug Laws

Aug. 1, 1962 - Stronger laws to protect consumers from potentially harmful drugs such as thalidomide were proposed by President Kennedy...

Arizona Television Host Who Took Thalidomide Seeks Abortion

July 31, 1962 - Mrs. Sherri Finkbine (pictured), host of the Arizona edition of the nationally syndicated television show “Romper Room,”...

Senate Hearing on Thalidomide Called by Sen. Humphrey

July 30, 1962 - A total of 1,229 physicians in 39 states and the District of Columbia and 1 in Canada received test samples of...

Dr. Kelsey Says Several Hundred Americans Took Thalidomide

July 27, 1962 - The Government doctor who prevented the drug Thalidomide from being sold commercially in the U.S. said today that several...

Thalidomide Controversy in Phoenix

July 24, 1962 - Controversy raged in Phoenix today over a proposed abortion for Sherri Finkbine (pictured), a young Phoenix mother and...

Female Doctor Prevented Sale of Thalidomide in U.S.

July 15, 1962 - A woman doctor was reported today to have prevented the birth of perhaps thousands of deformed babies in this country....

Thalidomide Causing Birth Defects in Europe

Apr. 11, 1962 - The birth of thousands of deformed babies in Europe has led an American physician to appeal for stricter Federal...