On 28 September 2021, the European Commission took another step in the implementation of its  new pharmaceutical strategy (discussed in more detail in our previous blog posts on the strategy, proposed amendments to orphan and paediatric legislation and the industry response).

As part of its work on the revision of the EU pharmaceutical legislation, the Commission launched a dedicated public consultation. The purpose of this consultation is to gather views and information to support the Commission’s impact assessment for the revision of the EU pharmaceutical legislation. This is, therefore, a good opportunity for all stakeholders to share their views and concerns, as well as their vision for the future EU pharmaceutical legislation.

The consultation is open until 21 December 2021 and seeks the views of all stakeholders on key issues such as:Continue Reading European Commission launches consultation on reform of EU pharmaceutical legislation

As we have discussed in previous posts, at the end of 2020, the European Commission set out its vision to build a European Health Union with its announcement of the new pharmaceutical strategy for Europe (the new Strategy). In 2021, the Commission has begun to implement the new Strategy, as discussed here. One area that was identified as in need of revision was the unmet medical needs in areas currently not within the scope of the legislation governing rare diseases and paediatric medicines. The Commission has been focused on this area for a number of years, and there have been a number of consultations and stakeholder engagements to explore possible changes to the legislative regime. We set out below a summary of the Commission’s proposals on orphan and paediatric medicinal products.

Continue Reading European Commission’s proposed amendments to orphan and paediatric legislation

Arnold & Porter’s Future Pharma Forum invites you to a complimentary regulatory seminar aimed at junior lawyers and new joiners in the UK/EU life sciences industry. We will provide a comprehensive introduction to key EU regulatory law topics from an in-house practitioner’s perspective and touch on the implications of Brexit.

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In July, we reported that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had announced a joint proposal to promote the use of innovative approaches to paediatric drug development. We noted that the EMA expected to publish a Reflection Paper setting out a systematic approach to extrapolation of paediatric data by the end of the year. This has now been published.
Continue Reading EMA Reflection Paper on paediatric extrapolation

Last week, the European Commission published its ten-year report on the implementation of the Paediatric Regulation 1901/2006 (together with a useful Questions & Answers document). The report provides an account of the Regulation’s achievements, both in public health and economic terms, and an analysis on the extent to which its objectives and aims have been met.

It concludes that positive advances in the development of medicines for children could not have been achieved without specific EU legislation, and that 260 new medicines (new marketing authorisations and new indications) have been authorised as a result. However, certain problem areas have been identified, in particular in relation to the interplay between the Paediatric Regulation and the Orphan Medicinal Products Regulation 141/2000. The report does not set out any proposals for amendments to the Regulation, but states it will be for the next Commission, after 2019, to implement any necessary changes.Continue Reading Ten-year report on Paediatric Regulation published

On 6 July 2017, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a joint proposal to promote the use of innovative approaches to paediatric drug development. The proposal focuses on paediatric Gaucher disease, but the intention is for the principles underlying the so-called “strategic collaborative approach” to be extended to other areas of development for rare paediatric diseases.

The collaborative approach was considered necessary as, given the limited number of patients with Gaucher disease, identifying multiple candidate target products, and running multiple clinical trials, may actually hinder the development of an effective treatment.
Continue Reading Innovative approaches to paediatric drug development