Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) continued to criticize the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for failing to provide lawmakers a Medical Device User Fee Amendments (MDUFA V) deal and for not publishing meeting minutes with industry on time. His comments came during the second user fee reauthorization hearing in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) committee.   On 26 April, the directors of FDA’s medical product centers sat before the HELP committee to ...

An advisory committee to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said animal models are “problematic” in assessing the safety risks of gene therapies derived from adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors.   FDA’s Cellular, Tissue, and Gene Therapies Advisory Committee (CTGTAC) held a virtual meeting on 2 September to discuss the best animal models to study to assess safety of these products.   “AAV are a popular type of gene therapy, yet we are seeing a variety o...

Earlier this week, an FDA advisory committee recommended that the agency withdraw Amag Pharmaceutical’s preterm birth drug Makena, a treatment that brought in more than $1 billion in sales before failing a confirmatory trial. The agency is now faced with the task of whether to take the committee’s vote and pull Makena from the market or allow it to remain until another confirmatory trial can be completed. Keeping Makena on the market would also present a rare situation,...

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Thursday advanced a bill by voice vote that would reform the way over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are brought to market by creating a user fee system like the ones used for prescription drugs and devices. The bill, introduced by Sens. Johnny Isakson (R-GA), who’s resigning from the Senate at the end of the year, and Bob Casey (D-PA), aims to speed up the antiquated approval process for OTC drugs and would create ...

Regulatory Focus is pleased to team with Tarius , a regulatory information services provider, to routinely offer information about upcoming FDA Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) meetings for CDER, CBER, and the Office of the Commissioner. Upcoming Meetings   13 September – Allergenic Products Advisory Committee   The committee will discuss and make recommendations on the safety and efficacy of Peanut [Arachis hypogaea] Allergen Powder manufactured by Ai...

When the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has significant questions or concerns about clinical data submitted in support of a product under review, it often seeks input from independent academicians and clinicians outside the agency. For this reason, FDA has established Advisory Committees comprised of such experts in various therapeutic areas. Currently, there are 49 such standing committees. If your company is a sponsor of a product subject to Advisory Committee rev...

While only about one in five US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) new drug approvals or safety decisions run counter to outside advisory committee advice, a new study published Monday in the Milbank Quarterly looks further into what happens when both sides disagree. Of the 404 advisory committee meetings that involved voting questions (out of a total of 759 meetings between 2008 and 2015), the study looked at 376 meetings, with 271 (72%) for initial product approvals...

The Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) committee on Tuesday discussed with representatives of the pharmaceutical supply chain how the drug delivery system affects what patients pay. Although none of the comments and arguments for reducing the price of pharmaceuticals were new, panelists and senators even seemed to disagree on what exactly is causing prices in the US to be so much higher than the rest of the world. Mark Merritt, president of the Phar...

The US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Patient Engagement Advisory Committee (PEAC) met for the first time on Wednesday and Thursday to give the agency input from  patients on clinical trials for medical devices. The meeting focused on a number of key issues related to clinical trials, with the goal of increasing patient input on trial design; patient recruitment, enrollment and retention; and communicating results back to patients. Patient Engagement at FDA FDA ...

The House Energy & Commerce Committee on Tuesday held a hearing to discuss a "Right-to-Try" bill passed in the Senate that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is seeking to change. The hearing discussed a bill that would seek to undercut FDA’s oversight of a program, known as expanded access, whereby terminally ill patients and their doctors can request access to an investigational drug outside of a clinical trial. Right-to-Try laws have now passed in 37 states...

This article provides insight for regulatory professionals regarding developing a successful advertising and promotional review of restricted medical devices. It demonstrates how medical device manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies can improve communication and collaboration between regulatory and marketing to streamline and improve the compliance review process for promotional materials and achieve an effective marketing strategy. The Dance "How small can I make...

The US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) on Thursday finalized guidance from 2015 on advisory committee meetings. Background Other than the Medical Devices Dispute Resolution Panel (which this guidance does not address), there are 17 device panels: (1) Anesthesiology and Respiratory Therapy Devices; (2) Circulatory System Devices; (3) Clinical Chemistry and Clinical Toxicology Devices; (4) Dental Products; (5) E...