By Alan M. Kirschenbaum – If you’re looking for Holiday reading, CMS has a gift for you! OMB’s Office of Information Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) has completed its review of a long-awaited CMS final regulation implementing significant changes to the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program. Completion of the review …
By Alexander J. Varond – On December 8, 2015, FDA approved two new therapies: Vonvendi (BLA 125577) for von Willebrand disease and Kanuma (NADA 141-453) for lysosomal acid lipase (LAL) deficiency. These approvals bring the number of new molecular entities and new therapeutic biological products approved this …
By James C. Shehan – In a citizen petition (Docket No. FDA-2015-P-4529) posted earlier this week, a group of fifteen institutional investors asked FDA to require that all approved prescription drug labeling for biosimilar and interchangeable biological products follow the “same labeling” approach that the agency applied …
By Riëtte van Laack – Although it has taken some time, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the USDA published a final rule establishing a mandatory inspection program for “catfish (“fish of the order Siluriformes and products derived from these fish.”) This rule implements …
By Jay W. Cormier – On December 8, 2015, FDA issued a complex set of approvals for a unique product, Kanuma (sebelipase alfa). Kanuma is indicated for the treatment of a rare disease known as lysosomal acid lipase (LAL) deficiency. The list of distinguishing descriptors for the …
By Kurt R. Karst – Earlier this week, Public Citizen announced the release of a report, titled “House Orphan Drug Proposal: A Windfall for Pharma, False ‘Cure’ for Patients,” that takes aim at a particular provision in the 21st Century Cures Act (H.R. 6) that the …
By Josephine M. Torrente & Etan J. Yeshua – In September, FDA proposed a significant limitation on the way drug sponsors can appeal FDA decisions, and yesterday Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, P.C. (HP&M) formally requested that the Agency reverse course. In a draft guidance document issued …
By Riëtte van Laack – On December 4, 2015, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) added Aloe vera, non-decolorized whole leaf extract and Goldenseal root powder to the list of “chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer for purposes of …
The Food and Drug Law Institute (FDLI) is holding a two day conference, titled “Enforcement, Litigation, and Compliance conference.” The workshop is this week, on December 9 and 10. Within the conference, Jeff Shapiro will participate in a medical device breakout panel focused on mHealth …
By Kurt R. Karst – Here’s something you don’t often see: FDA initiating procedures to suspend the approval of an ANDA because of an Agency determination that the Reference Listed Drug (“RLD”) was withdrawn for what the Agency determined were safety or effectiveness reasons. But on …
In November 2013, the Drug Quality and Security Act (“DQSA”) was signed into law in an effort to increase the quality of the United States drug supply. The law contains two separate acts: the Compounding Quality Act (Title I), and the Drug Supply Chain Security …
By Riëtte van Laack - On November 23, an updated version of the Food Labeling Modernization Act (FLMA) of 2013 was introduced. Representatives Frank Pallone and Rosa DeLauro introduced the House bill (H.R. 4061) and a Senate version (S. 2301) was introduced by Senators Richard Blumenthal and …
By Ricardo Carvajal – FDA’s Food Advisory Committee (FAC) will meet on December 7-8 to discuss a number of issues related to Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono) in ready-to-eat (RTE) foods. As summarized in the supporting background document, the public health and regulatory challenges posed by L. mono have bedeviled FDA and …
By Kurt R. Karst – On November 18, 2015, Representative Peter Sessions (R-TX) introduced H.R. 4075, the Cosmetic Modernization Amendments of 2015, to little fanfare. The bill continues a recent trend among legislators (both federal and state) to attempt to legislate in the personal care products …
By Kurt R. Karst – Last Wednesday, November 25, 2015, after a long slog through the legislative process (see our previous post here), President Obama signed into law the Improving Regulatory Transparency for New Medical Therapies Act (H.R.639). (Unlike other bills, H.R.639 doesn’t have a sexy …
