What’s not to love about that?

I also, of course, believe that extremely ill people should have the right to try promising treatments. I believe that not just as a doctor, but simply as a human.

Even some of Trump’s most vocal critics support the legislation. Congressman Ted Lieu, who has been a vocal detractor of the president, wrote on Twitter on Wednesday: “Pleased [President Trump] signed the right to try bill. I voted for it because the current status quo is unacceptable. A close friend of mine was prescribed experimental medication but couldn’t get it because of the messed-up incentives for drug companies. She died of cancer.”

The self-described “opponent of President Trump” Ed Krassenstein similarly broke form: “I applaud Trump for signing the ‘Right to Try’ bill today. It’s not often that I applaud him for doing something, so this is a huge occasion.” (He added: “This doesn’t wipe out the fact that he conspired against the United States, obstructed justice, spread hate, and is ruining America.”)

So what’s the catch? Did something just happen that everyone loves, and will save hundreds of thousands of lives?

If that were the case, of course, the bill would’ve passed long ago. In fact, many ethicists and doctors and patient advocates quite emphatically oppose it, as do former FDA commissioners. The American Society of Clinical Oncology is among nearly 40 health organizations that have publicly dragged the bill, saying it “could do more harm than good to seriously ill patients.” In a February letter to Congress, the groups reminded legislators that the current regulatory system for medical products was created as a result of serious harm and exploitation that occurred early in the 20th century: “Birth defects resulting from Thalidomide are an example of what happens when drugs are given to humans without proper safety review and approval.”

The legislation is a product of the conservative advocacy organization the Goldwater Institute, and backed by the Koch Brothers’ Americans for Prosperity. The name is cynical but effective. As Trump said on Wednesday, “‘Right to Try.’ It’s such a great name. Some bills, they don’t have a good name. Okay? They really don’t. But this is such a great name, from the first day I heard it. It’s so perfect.”

The name is certainly catchier than the existing name for the program that already does almost exactly the same thing—allowing people with serious diseases to obtain experimental medicines. It is known as expanded access, or more commonly, “compassionate use.”

The difference is that the current program operates through the Food and Drug Administration, which retains the ability to deny some requests for drugs it has not yet approved for use in the general population. The FDA reports that it already authorizes more than 99 percent of requests—so the upcoming change could be minimal. But the potential to exploit this lack of oversight is a risk. In the rare cases when access to unapproved drugs is denied, it can be because of serious concerns about risks on behalf of the pharmaceutical company, or because a physician has overlooked an obviously better alternative.