Manufacturing facility issues were the most common deficiencies seen in the increasing number of complete response letters for biologics issued by the US FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, according to an early analysis of 10 years of biologic license application approvals.
Facility Deficiencies Drive Rising CRL Rates For CDER Biologics
A US FDA analysis found that facility inspection issues were the fastest growing factor in the recent rise of complete response letters for biologics licensing applications, in part reflecting the limitations of single-product inspections at contract facilities manufacturing multiple products.

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Cell and gene therapy manufacturers must consider the practicalities of their product within the context of a health care system before it comes onto the market to be successful, experts from Novartis, AstraZeneca and England’s National Health Service say.
A global collaborative inspections pilot reduced the number of individual inspections for participating manufacturing facilities, demonstrating that multiple regulatory authorities can carry out joint inspections using a mix of on-site and remote approaches.
The UK’s medicines regulator is pressing on with clarifying its expectations on decentralized manufacturing of medicines.
Newly proposed legislation for bolstering the EU’s drug manufacturing capacity and reducing its overreliance on foreign manufacturers includes a number of measures, such a requirement for EU countries to prioritize the security of supply over price when procuring drugs.
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Sponsors should review longstanding agency concepts on consumer-friendly language and claims limitations, along with Office of Prescription Drug Promotion research and enforcement, when applying the 2018 CFL guidance to direct-to-consumer advertising, Sidley Austin’s Cope says.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is moving FDA Chief Counsel Robert Foster to a new senior position as Chief Counsel for Food, Research, and Drugs at HHS. Hilary Perkins will become FDA chief counsel.
Newly proposed legislation for bolstering the EU’s drug manufacturing capacity and reducing its overreliance on foreign manufacturers includes a number of measures, such a requirement for EU countries to prioritize the security of supply over price when procuring drugs.