Pharmaceutical industry officials have proposed the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) develop a new harmonized chapter on visual inspections of parenteral drugs that would address current testing gaps. This chapter would be developed with input from the European Pharmacopeia and the Japanese Pharmacopeia. Such a chapter would allow for more robust detection of visible particles in these drugs, which is a common reason for reason for recalls and warning letters in the US,...

In a report to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published on Thursday, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) outlines five priorities for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to address to meet its public health mission.   In the report, addressed to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, GAO calls for Becerra’s personal attention in addressing 61 open priority recommendations for the department and its sub agencies, 43 of which are holdovers from las...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on 17 May revised its question-and-answer guidance on inspections during the COVID-19 pandemic to clarify the regulatory actions it plans to take when it cannot conduct an onsite inspection of a facility.   FDA announced that while the pandemic continues to restrict onsite inspections, the agency “intends to continue using alternative tools to evaluate facilities.” FDA continues to conduct onsite inspections for those products ...

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) is seeking feedback on ways to improve the Australian Therapeutic Goods Advertising Code and has proposed options for addressing provisions that it has identified as unclear or inconsistent since the current version of the code came into effect two years ago.   In the consultation document, TGA lists multiple issues with the current code that stakeholders have identified, plus options for how to remedy them. For example, some ...

Regulators from the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency gave an update on desktop and virtual inspections and offered some advice on ensuring smoother audits at a 28 April webinar.   While there seemed to be acceptance among regulators that virtual and desktop inspections are a reality until the COVID-19 public health emergency is over, a larger group of health officials at the webinar said that onsite inspections are much better at uncove...

More than a year after the COVID-19 pandemic forced the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to halt most on-site inspections, the agency on Wednesday issued guidance detailing its approach to remote interactive evaluations of drug and biomedical research facilities during the public health emergency.   Teleconferencing, livestreaming video and screen-sharing technologies are among the tools FDA says it will use when it determines that a remote interactive evaluation ...

In closing a whistleblower case concerning allegations of downgraded inspection findings raised by a former investigator on the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Team Biologics, US Special Counsel Henry Kerner wrote to President Joe Biden that he is “troubled” by many aspects of the case.   In the letter, Kerner says that FDA’s report on its investigation of the allegations “meets all the statutory requirements but that the findings do not appear reasonable” and ...

For decades, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has raised concerns about the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) inspections program. Now, a year after the agency halted most of its foreign and domestic inspections due to the COVID-19 pandemic, GAO warns that the ensuing backlog could take years to clear.   In a new report and testimony before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related...

A global consortium of regulators is turning to seasonal influenza vaccine authorization as a model for how to address variant-adjusted version of authorized COVID-19 vaccines.   New guidance available from the ACCESS consortium, including the United Kingdom’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), directs vaccine developers to focus on demonstrating robust immune response against new variants when trialing modified COVID-19 vaccines. In addition...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says it has put in place an interim process to communicate issues identified during record reviews done in lieu of or in advance of preapproval inspections with drugmakers and consider their responses before taking action on an application.   The agency says the interim process will continue throughout the COVID-19 public health emergency and may be extended to other drug inspection programs, including routine surveillance insp...

In a nearly 350-page report to Congress on the federal government’s COVID-19 response, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) calls on the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to review its inspections approach and come up with a plan to address its looming backlog.   Pandemic inspection alternatives   In the early days of the pandemic, FDA halted non-mission-critical foreign and domestic inspections and relied on alternative tools, such as inspection reports ...

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) on Monday granted provisional approval to Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty for individuals aged 16 and older, making it the first COVID-19 vaccine authorized for use in Australia.   The approval follows a provisional determination by the agency in October allowing for the submission of the application under the provisional pathway. TGA has also granted provisional determinations for vaccines developed by Astra...