1. Pink Sheet
  2. >>Compliance
  3. >>Manufacturing

2020 In Review: Despite Pandemic, The US FDA Issued Just 20% Fewer Drug GMP Warning Letters

2021 warning letter rate could decline further

 
• By Joanne S. Eglovitch

The US FDA managed to issue 94 drug GMP warning letters last year despite the pandemic, with fewer expected for 2021. Top issue areas included lack of sterility assurance, nitrosamine impurities, poor data integrity and basic GMP failures.

warning sign
Majority Of FDA's GMP Warning Letters Hit Domestic Firms Last Year

The rate at which the US Food and Drug Administration issued drug good manufacturing practices warning letters declined by just 20% from 118 in 2019 to 94 in 2020 despite a global pandemic that led the agency to suspend most inspections late in the first quarter.

The rate would have been lower but for 14 non-inspection-based drug GMP warning letters to Mexican companies trying to meet soaring US demand for hand santizers due to COVID-19 with products found to contain poisonous methanol when tested at the border. The FDA established a new import alert category for such products

Read the full article – start your free trial today!

Join thousands of industry professionals who rely on Pink Sheet for daily insights

  • Start your 7-day free trial
  • Explore trusted news, analysis, and insights
  • Access comprehensive global coverage
  • Enjoy instant access – no credit card required
Start Free Trial

Already a subscriber?

More from Manufacturing

US FDA’s Expanded Surprise Foreign Inspections: Impact And Enforcement Hoops

 
• By Anju Ghangurde

As the US FDA expands unannounced foreign inspections building on pilots in India and China, experts expect higher scrutiny of overseas sites and perhaps even an industry shakeout in the longer term, though staffing and enforcement challenges could slow things down.

Pharma Industry Argues Tax, Other Incentives Better Than Tariffs

 
• By Jessica Merrill

Pharmaceutical industry organizations offered alternatives to tariffs that could maintain a secure domestic supply chain in public comments filed in response to a federal 232 investigation.

US FDA Expands Surprise Foreign Inspections But Loses Associate Commissioner Michael Rogers

 
• By Sue Sutter

Commissioner Martin Makary’s repeated characterization of foreign facilities as being subject to lower standards than domestic counterparts may have contributed to Rogers’ decision to retire as head of the recently formed Office of Inspections and Investigations.

Pharma Predicts Modest Tariff Impact, Depending On What Comes Next

 
• By Jessica Merrill

Drugmakers are not expecting a big financial hit from tariffs for now, but a report commissioned by the industry trade association PhRMA suggests a potentially steep cost for pharma-sector tariffs.

More from Compliance

Switzerland Simplifies Imports Of Unauthorized Drugs To Tackle Drug Shortages

 
• By Eliza Slawther

Swiss authorities have introduced temporary measures that will make it easier for health care professionals to import medicines that are either not authorized or not available in Switzerland, which will particularly benefit pediatric drugs, in light of ongoing shortages.

Aragen’s CEO Says NIH Funding Cut Means Less R&D Money, And Tariffs Would Add To Woes

 
• By Vibha Ravi

Aragen’s CEO Manni Kantipudi, who is keenly watching the Trump Administration’s moves on pharma tariffs, discusses funding cuts at the National Institutes of Health, big pharma’s US onshoring moves, and talks with the Indian government to solve intellectual property challenges in an audio interview.

US FDA Retirements Continue Unabated With Drug Inspectorate Leaders, Former Chief Counsel

 
• By Sue Sutter and Derrick Gingery

Alonza Cruse, director of the Office of Human and Animal Drugs Inspectorate, and two other senior inspection officials are departing, along with Mark Raza, chief counsel from 2021 until January.