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  • Medical Devices

    • As Partial Government Shutdown Kicks In, FDA’s Foods Program Is Hardest HitOctober 1st, 2013

      By Ricardo Carvajal & Kurt R. Karst – According to contingency plans drawn up by the Department of Health and Human Services, 45% of FDA’s nearly 15,000 staff were to be furloughed in the absence of enacted annual appropriations – popularly referred to as a …

    • Mobile Medical Applications: A Thoughtful Guidance Is FinalizedSeptember 26th, 2013

      By Jeffrey K. Shapiro – As everybody has noticed, FDA finalized its guidance on Mobile Medical Applications earlier this week.  We blogged on the draft version here. The final guidance is similar to the draft guidance – but with improved clarity.  Hence, it has expanded from …

    • Keeping Up With CDRH: New Draft SOP for Guidance Documents on Premarket Data Issues (Our 2,000th Post!)September 26th, 2013

      By Allyson B. Mullen – Have you ever heard of an “Immediately in Effect (IIE)” guidance document?  Thanks to a new draft SOP issued by CDRH, you may soon see this new species of guidance on a regular basis. In section 405 of Food and Drug …

    • The Wait is Over: The UDI Rule is Finally HereSeptember 24th, 2013

      By Jennifer D. Newberger – At long last, it is here: FDA has issued the final rule implementing the unique device identifier (UDI) requirements, originally required by the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007 (FDAAA) and then again by the Food and Drug …

    • Premature Enforcement of CDRH’s Draft Cybersecurity GuidanceSeptember 12th, 2013

      By Allyson B. Mullen – Earlier this summer, CDRH issued a new Draft Guidance for the Content of Premarket Submissions for Management of Cybersecurity in Medical Devices (the “Draft Guidance”).  We have previously posted on the Draft Guidance here.  As noted in our earlier post, …

    • Recommendations of FDASIA Health IT Workgroup AcceptedSeptember 11th, 2013

      By Jennifer D. Newberger – The Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (“FDASIA”), signed into law in July 2012, requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) to “post a report—within 18 months (or by January 2014)—that contains a proposed strategy and recommendations …

    • Is the Malfunction MDR Reporting Requirement Unconstitutional?September 9th, 2013

      By Jeffrey K. Shapiro – In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court held that agency regulations and enforcement policy violate due process if they do not provide fair notice of what is prohibited or required, or are so standardless that they permit seriously discriminatory enforcement.  FCC v. …

    • CDRH Issues Draft Guidance on the Applicability of GLPs in Device SubmissionsSeptember 5th, 2013

      By Allyson B. Mullen – On August 28, 2013, FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health issued a draft guidance, “The Applicability of Good Laboratory Practice in Premarket Device Submissions: Questions & Answers.”  This new, short guidance restates the requirements of the Good Laboratory Practices …

    • FDA Issues Final Guidance on Radio Frequency Wireless Technology in Medical DevicesAugust 18th, 2013

      By Jennifer D. Newberger – An increasing number of devices employ radio frequency wireless technology.  This trend is likely to continue.  These devices present some new technological issues.  To respond to these new issues, FDA has just released a draft guidance titled, “Radio Frequency Wireless …

    • PREVOR v. FDA: Round II in CourtAugust 1st, 2013

      By Allyson B. Mullen – You may recall that French device maker PREVOR previously sued, and won, in litigation against FDA regarding FDA’s classification of Diphoterine® Skin Wash (“DSW”), a product used in industrial settings as a “first response” method to minimize chemical burns.  Hyman, …

    • FDA Announces Fiscal Year 2014 User Fee Rates; They’re Movin’ On Up!August 1st, 2013

      By Kurt R. Karst –   Now that we've put the theme from The Jeffersons in your head . . . . On August 2, 2013, FDA will officially announce in a series of Federal Register notices the Fiscal Year 2014 (“FY 2014”) user fee rates under …

    • The Mystery of the Missing MDR NoticeJuly 21st, 2013

      By Jennifer D. Newberger & Jeffrey N. Gibbs – In the draft MDR guidance discussed in our prior post, FDA stated that it has not yet issued a Federal Register notice required by the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007 (“FDAAA”) regarding certain …

    • FDA SOS: New Bill Would Exempt FDA User Fees From the Ravages of SequestrationJuly 18th, 2013

      By Kurt R. Karst –       “… — …” – That’s the international Morse code distress signal commonly shown as SOS.  SOS is also in the title of the acronymized “FDA SOS Act,” or the “FDA Safety Over Sequestration Act,” which a bipartisan group of members …

    • In Case You (Like Everyone) Missed It – The Administrative Conference of the United States is BackJuly 17th, 2013

      By Joseph W. Cormier – Last week, the Administrative Conference of the United States ("ACUS") made four recommendations to the Executive Branch and independent agencies, three of which may be of interest to readers of this blog. Among its first recommendations this year, the ACUS …

    • All Device Manufacturers Must Report!July 14th, 2013

      By Jennifer D. Newberger – At long last, 16 years after the most recent version, FDA has issued a new draft guidance about medical device reporting for manufacturers.  Companies have long complained about the ambiguities in the regulation.  In a typical case of “be careful what …