Record Number Of Warning Letters Issued In 2012; Complaint Handling Troubles Significant
• By Shawn M. Schmitt
Device manufacturers were sent an historic number of warning letters by FDA last year, eclipsing the previous high from 1997. FDA has not yet completed its own analysis of 2012 warning letter trends, but an ex-agency official says there are several likely reasons for the increase. FDA’s Office of Chief Counsel “is no longer throwing cold water on letters. Investigators are being trained a lot better and are becoming more experienced. And certainly the Office of Compliance and CDRH are under new management. You put all of those things together and I think that’s the answer,” says Michael Chappell, a former FDA associate commissioner for regulatory affairs. The number of foreign warning letters also increased in 2012, comprising 39 percent of overall letters. In another first for warning letters last year, complaint handling supplanted CAPA as the violation found most in letters. Further, four former FDA officials share tips for writing warning letter responses to FDA.
Medical device manufacturers were slapped last year with the most warning letters since FDA began enforcing its Quality System Regulation more than 16 years ago.
A total of 169 quality-related warning letters were doled out by the agency in calendar year 2012, topping the
Read the full article – start your free trial today!
Join thousands of industry professionals who rely on Medtech Insight for daily insights
Editor’s note: This is your final call to participate in the survey to better understand our subscribers’ content and delivery needs. The deadline is 20 September.
Editor’s note: We are conducting a survey to better understand our subscribers’ content and delivery needs. If there are any changes you’d like to see in coverage topics, content format or the method in which you receive and access Medtech Insight, or if you love it how it is, now is the time to have your voice heard.
Medtronic announced it received expanded MRI labeling for its DBS systems, which is critical, given that almost 70% of all DBS-eligible patients will likely need an MRI at some point in their care, says Ashwini Sharan, CMO for Medtronic Neuromodulation.
In this episode, Medtech Insight reporter Natasha Barrow speaks to LungLife AI CEO Paul
Pagano. Lung Life AI is a US-based AIM-listed medical technology company that has developed a liquid biopsy test for the early detection of lung cancer called Lung LB. Pagano runs through the highlights of Lung Life AI journey to date and its future ambition for a strategic partnership. He also provides advice to similar diagnostic companies seeking reimbursement andcompliance with the US FDA Lab Developed Test ruling.
The intricate assembly of medical devices, often involving over 1,000 globally sourced components, faces severe disruption due to new US tariffs. These barriers could halt production and devastate small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), MedTech Europe’s CEO, Oliver Bisazza, warns in an interview with Medtech Insight.
With medtech businesses typically managing investment cycles on a three- to five-year basis, local regulatory processes and forward costs of market entry must offer an attractive environment in which companies can plan for growth, says McDermott Will and Emery’s partner and head of healthcare and life sciences, Sharon Lamb. Broad-scale improvements to NICE’s evaluation offerings would similarly enhance the UK’s value to innovators.
The US FDA has approved the Teal Wand, the first at-home cervical cancer screening device. Capable of detecting preclinical cancer with 96% accuracy, it will launch in California in June and expand nationwide soon after.
