Congressionally authorized regulatory flexibility could provide medical device manufacturers with more options and help the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) better monitor product safety and efficacy, according to Jeff Shuren, director of the FDA Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH).   “There really is a need for more flexibility to have agile regulation,” said Shuren during a fireside chat on 22 March at the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy’s d...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday outlined a pared-down plan to collect quality metrics data from drugmakers in an attempt to renew its earlier stalled effort to obtain manufacturing quality data as a means of mitigating potential drug shortages and promoting enhanced quality management in the pharmaceutical industry.   The agency stressed in an announcement that this program would be different from the original quality metrics draft guidance unv...

To ensure resiliency in the medical supply chain, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should publicly disclose the location of all manufacturing facilities that supply ingredients and parts for pharmaceuticals and medical devices approved in the US, according to a consensus study report from the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM).   This is one of seven recommendations in a 365-page report on building supply chain resiliency. The re...

Developing therapies for rare diseases involves complex incentives, unique requirements, and often extensive patient engagement. The authors of RAPS’ Orphan Drug Development for Rare Diseases , Sundar Ramanan, PhD, MBA, and Sunny Kamlesh Dave, MPharm, recently took time to discuss with RAPS Senior Editor Gloria Hall the importance of orphan drugs, the peculiarities and challenges of obtaining an orphan drug designation (ODD), and what is covered in the book. During a “m...

Welcome to Regulatory Reconnaissance, your daily regulatory news and intelligence briefing.   In Focus: US More than 1 million Americans were diagnosed with COVID over the long holiday weekend ( NPR ) ( Reuters ) Elizabeth Holmes is found guilty of four counts of fraud ( NYT ) ( POLITICO ) The Epic Rise and Fall of Elizabeth Holmes ( NYT ) Pfizer carries pandemic momentum into 2022, scoring another huge Paxlovid deal with the US ( Fierce ) CDER, CBER Approve Total...

Welcome to the December issue of RF Quarterly which focuses on key takeaways from RAPS Convergence 2021, including patient-focused approaches in regulatory decision making and drug development, the transition from convergence to harmonization for global pharmaceutical regulatory requirements, pediatric drug development, and regulatory and clinical strategies.   Patient perspective and global harmonization There is increasing recognition of the importance of patients...

This article discusses pediatric drug development in the EU and US, with an emphasis on overcoming regulatory obstacles. The authors present the commonalities and differences between US and EU regulations and guidelines and examine the legislative acts and subsequent regulatory requirements, while outlining the necessary steps for successful implementation of pediatric drug clinical trials. They conclude with a discussion of three case studies that highlight strategic init...

Pediatric oncology patients continue to have significant unmet medical need. Although the Pediatric Research Equity Act (PREA) mandated evaluation of new drugs for pediatric patients, the rarity and uniquity of pediatric cancers allowed for waivers or exemptions from PREA requirements. The passing of FDA Reauthorization Act amendments in 2017 included the Research Acceleration for Cure and Equity Act, which expands the scope of oncology products subject to PREA. Sponsors d...

The US and EU require sponsors to evaluate their drugs for use in children. The low prevalence of many conditions in children means sponsors commonly want to conduct one pediatric development program that satisfies the requirements of both the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA). However, multiregional pediatric development is challenging. This article will describe some of the challenges associated with pediatric development, offer po...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends that trading partners use the semi-distributed model to trace drug products though the drug distribution chain because of this model’s flexibility and advantages over other data architecture models. The Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) requires that trading partners have these systems in place by November 2023.   Connie Jung, acting associate director for policy and compliance in FDA’s Office of Drug Security, ...

Regulators from the US, Canada, and the United Kingdom unveiled 10 principles to guide the development of good machine learning practice for medical devices.   The principles are meant to be used to drive the adoption of good practices that have been proven in other sectors, to help tailor those practices so that they are applicable to medical technology, and to create new practices specific to the health care sector. The document, which was issued by the US Food and...

A new drug development model released by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates a Medicare drug pricing bill like the one proposed by Democrats in the US House of Representatives could result in between 21 and 59 fewer drugs brought to market over the next three decades.   The Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act ( H.R. 3 ), introduced in the 116th Congress during the 2019-2020 legislative session, would require the Secretary of Health and Human Servi...