Interviews

Retiring CDER Deputy Director: Misconception That US FDA Regulators Cannot Change

 

Retiring CDER Deputy Director Douglas Throckmorton spoke to the Pink Sheet ahead of his early 2025 retirement about regulatory flexibility, AI and other topics.

Clinical Trials: US Diversity Action Plans Could Benefit From EQBMED Pilot Program

 
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The Equitable Breakthroughs in Medicine Development initiative, funded with a PhRMA grant, provides sites in historically under-represented communities with support to conduct clinical research. In an interview, EQBMED’s Tesheia Johnson Harris talks about the local sites selected, therapeutic areas for research, and learnings to date.

Alexion Cautions Against Reduction In EU Orphan Drug Incentives

 

EU legislators must be “mindful” that any changes made to the EU orphan medicines framework and its incentive structure will impact drugmakers and patients for the next two decades, says Soraya Bekkali, head of Europe, Canada, and international at Alexion.

Trump’s CMS Inherits Medicare Price ‘Facilitator’ System Build Out; Should Pharma Be Worried?

 
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The potential for manufacturer liability may become a concern if problems providing rebates to pharmacies on negotiated drugs emerge because the system goes awry, a former CMS official suggested in an interview with the Pink Sheet.


Wider Gene Therapy Definition In EU Will Require ‘Myth-Busting’ From EMA

 

The European Commission’s proposed pharma legislation overhaul could expand the definition of a gene therapy medicinal product, posing challenges both from a regulatory and public perception perspective.

EURORDIS Chief Backs ‘Collective Bargaining’ For Orphan Drugs Under EU Pharma Reform

 

The European Parliament proposed introducing joint procurement for orphan medicinal products in the EU pharma legislation overhaul – a move that the new CEO of EURORDIS says could lead to “faster and more equitable” access to drugs for rare diseases.

KRSC Aims To Raise Korea’s Regulatory Science Game

 
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The head of the Korea Regulatory Science Center talks exclusively to the Pink Sheet about why regulatory science is crucial, the country's efforts to improve in the area and the center's strategic bridging role.

EU HTA Regulation A Positive Move For Rare Disease Therapies, says EURORDIS Chief

 

Greater transparency around EU health technology assessment processes “can only be a good thing” for innovative rare disease therapies, Virginie Bros-Facer, the new CEO of the EU network of rare disease patient organizations, EURORDIS, tells the Pink Sheet.


US FDA Biosimilar Standards Likely Sealed Interchangeability Designation’s Fate

 

When the agency decided biosimilarity standards would be high, it likely ensured the interchangeability designation eventually would become unnecessary.

ICH Q5A(R2): ‘More Regulatory Flexibilities Than Hurdles’

 
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CRO executive Horst Ruppach discusses the critical factors that drug manufacturers must consider to ensure compliance with the revised ICH Q5A(R2) guideline on biologics viral safety. Thorough documentation and proactive engagement with regulatory bodies are key to navigating the complexities of viral safety evaluation in biotechnology products, he says.

Has Competition Reassurance Helped Counter Combination Woes In The UK?

 
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The rate of non-submissions for combination therapies in England has been on a downward trend in the last two years.

‘There Is No Silver Bullet’ – Sandoz’s Haruvi Talks US Shortages

 
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As Sandoz publishes a report on US drug shortages, including a call for policy and other improvements, the firm’s North America head and AAM Chair Keren Haruvi discussed potential solutions to ongoing supply-chain failures.


UK’s ISRCTN Registry Makes It Easier To Track Clinical Trial Transparency

 
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The ISRCTN clinical trials registry has launched an improved dashboard to provide metrics that reveal how many studies are complying with key transparency requirements. Badges are in place for individual studies meeting the transparency criteria.

EUCOPE: EU Pharma Reform Positive, But Industry Needs Clearer Definitions

 

High unmet needs is among the terms and definitions in the EU’s regulatory reform package that are “very subjective” and require more clarity to improve predictability for the pharmaceutical industry, EUCOPE’s secretary general, Alexander Natz, tells the Pink Sheet.

New AAM CEO Looking To ‘Force Multiply’ For US Generics Industry

 

John Murphy, who will take over the Association for Accessible Medicines in October, said in an interview that the number and types of voices advocating for the generics industry must increase.

EU HTA Regulation: Some Member States Could Be ‘Deselected’ From Joint Assessments

 

The EU HTA Regulation will see clinical comparisons of medical products conducted at an EU level. However, the needs of some smaller nations may not be represented, experts from Cencora explain in this second of two articles on the new EU joint clinical assessments.


EU HTA Regulation: Expect The Unexpected When It Comes To PICOs

 

Manufacturers should undertake scenario planning exercises and simulations to prepare for questions that will be asked under the upcoming EU HTA Regulation, but unpredictable questions are likely to arise, experts from Cencora caution in this first of two articles on the new EU joint clinical assessments.

Ipsen On Working With The UK’s Health Authorities To Make Industry’s Voice Heard

 

Improvements in the UK’s manufacturing and clinical trial ecosystems are on the “Christmas list” of Ioana Parsons, Ipsen’s general manager for the UK & Ireland.

How The EU, US & Brazil Are Shaping Decentralized Manufacturing For ATMPs

 

Regulators in Europe and the US have demonstrated a commitment to providing guidance that will make decentralized and point-of-care manufacturing a reality, the CSO of GermFree, a company that provides mobile and modular cleanrooms for manufacturing advanced therapies, tells the Pink Sheet.

Regulators Want Reduced Animal Testing – Could AI Be The Answer?

 

AI modeling can predict which animal tests are useful and necessary, saving money for companies and meeting objectives set by regulators in the US and EU, VeriSIM Life’s CEO and founder Jo Varshney tells the Pink Sheet.