Senator Orrin G. Hatch (1934-2022) was instrumental in raising the framework of today’s dietary supplement industry as a principal author of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA). “Utah’s political godfather,” according to The Salt Lake Tribune, Hatch served in the U.S. Senate for 42 years (1977 to 2019), longer than any other Republican. He died at the age of 88 while surrounded by his family in Salt Lake City on Apr. 23.

“I had the good fortune to meet the Senator 45 years ago, working on his staff,” said Loren Israelsen, president of the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA), which is based in Salt Lake City. “As I reflected on his life and extraordinary legislative career I felt a great sense of gratitude for that fortuitous time in Washington, which changed the course of my own career and life experience. Many others no doubt feel the same.”

“To some he is an iconic name, the champion of our industry who created the framework for a thriving industry,” Israelsen continued. “He did this because he believed in the value of supplements, when so many of his Congressional colleagues thought otherwise. He was immaculate in his attire, a song writer, courteous and respectful, the longest serving Republican in the history of the U.S. Senate, and one hell of a fighter.” 

DSHEA: The Game Changer
Hatch introduced DSHEA with Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) in 1994. The legislation amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to establish standards for dietary supplements while ensuring consumer access to health products without pre-approval from FDA. 

When DSHEA was signed into law by President Bill Clinton on Oct. 25, 1994 the dietary supplement market was estimated at around $4 billion. Today, the supplement industry is close to about $56 billion.

DSHEA exists, Israelsen said, because Hatch “refused to give up when all around him were battle weary and ready to throw in the towel. He would not let us, and rallied the troops more than once. Over the years many of those who fought for health freedom have passed on, and now our champion has joined them. Please find a quiet moment to consider that your job is very likely due to Senator Hatch, and offer your thanks that he fought the good fight for so long and so courageously.”

Patricia Knight, a senior political advisor to UNPA, said she cut her teeth on DSHEA “early on in my 15-year Senate career, and sincerely doubt Senator Hatch would have ever promoted me to Chief of Staff had we not enjoyed the success we did in pushing for this ground-breaking law. I became a true Hatch devotee from that intense experience, as I saw how time and time again he masterminded enactment of the bill over a three year period, steeping himself in the intricacies of food and drug law, working closely with Loren, UNPA and our members.”

DSHEA’s framework has stood up to an evolving landscape over nearly 30 years, Knight said, “but more importantly it has benefited both consumers and industry as we strive to help people have the options they want to lead more healthful lives. This could not have happened without the strategic genius and persistence of Senator Hatch, and the critical partnership with Senator Harkin and Peter (Reinecke). It is clear to me that no one else in the Congress could have achieved this victory.”

Life and Tenure
The former seven-term U.S. Senator “personified the American Dream,” according to a statement from Matt Sandgren, executive director of the Hatch Foundation. “Born the son of a carpenter and plaster lather, he overcame the poverty of his youth to become a United States Senator. With the hardships of his upbringing always fresh in his mind, he made it his life’s mission to expand freedom and opportunity for others—and the results speak for themselves.”

During his tenure, Hatch authored or coauthored more than 750 bills that became law, including: the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which helps protect the free exercise of religion for all Americans; the Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act (also known as Hatch-Waxman), which created the modern generic drug industry; the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (or SCHIP), which provides healthcare for uninsured children from low-income families who don’t qualify for Medicaid; and the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities.

“Senator Hatch provided critical bipartisan leadership that led to the enactment of historic legislation that helped shaped the nonprescription drug and dietary supplement industries,” said Scott Melville, president and CEO of the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA), calling Hatch “a principled legislator dedicated to his state and his nation.”

“These measures, and others, have improved safety, quality, and access to healthcare for American consumers by strengthening FDA oversight, creating standards for adverse event reporting, labeling, product uniformity, good manufacturing practices, and much more,” said Melville. CHPA awarded Hatch with its Ivan D. Combe Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006, “to recognize his many accomplishments and commitment to consumer healthcare.”

Hatch was one of only a few Senators in history to serve as Chairman of three major Senate Committees: Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (previously the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee), Judiciary Committee, and the Finance Committee. As President Pro Tempore of the U.S. Senate, he was also third in line to the presidency when he retired in 2019.

Industry Gratitude
“We lost a friend and a giant of the natural products industry,” said Daniel Fabricant, president and CEO of the Natural Products Association. “His service to the United States of America and Utah is second to none. Senator Hatch was an incredibly compassionate man who was an exemplary model for working across the aisle. No other individual has left a greater impact on the dietary supplement industry. From his authoring of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act to his active engagement and open-door policy with industry stakeholders, he was a titan for all-natural products industry stakeholders big or small.”

Steve Mister, president and CEO of the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) called Hatch “a tremendous statesman and champion for the dietary supplement industry.”

“Our members and dietary supplement consumers owe him immeasurable gratitude for his unwavering support for this industry and his tenacious defense of the ability of consumers to make their own decisions about their health regimens and to have access to these products,” Mister continued. “It is no overstatement to say that the industry as it exists today was brought into being by Senator Hatch and his Democratic counterpart, Senator Tom Harkin. The two founding fathers of this industry co-sponsored and championed the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, recognized as the foundational law for today’s supplement industry.”

After the passage of DSHEA, Hatch continued to “support and defend the industry,” Mister noted, “through co-sponsorship of the law creating mandatory adverse event reporting for dietary supplements in 2006, and gave his support for other initiatives still being debated today, such as including supplements in reimbursable healthcare expenses and establishing mandatory product listing.”

Hatch was truly “a champion for health freedom,” noted Michael McGuffin, president of the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA). “Senator Hatch championed the balance between consumer choice and product safety that established the foundation of the industry as we know it today. What’s more, Senator Hatch’s support of our industry was genuine: he personally used dietary supplements throughout his life to support his own health, and strongly believed natural products helped him and can help others.”

Hatch’s impact on the dietary supplement industry “cannot be understated,” said McGuffin. “His legacy will be carried on as AHPA continues to defend the rights of our families, friends and neighbors to have access to dietary supplements and natural products for their personal health.”

Bipartisanship, Civility and Solutions
Hatch was known for working across the political aisle, an artform that has been difficult to sustain in today’s hyper-partisan environment. “Civility and solutions” are the twin pillars of the Hatch Foundation—ideals that underpinned the Senator’s service and guide the organization’s mission today.

According to Mister, Hatch’s “willingness to seek compromise and consensus—traits too little in evidence today—are worthy of our emulation. While we mourn his loss and extend our deepest heartfelt sympathies to his family, friends, and staff, we know we are all also much indebted to his legacy.”

In a statement, President Joe Biden said, “Orrin Hatch once shared in an interview that he had a soft side, and he had a tough side. To serve with Orrin, as I did for over three decades, was to see—and appreciate—both.”