2012-5857. Preparation for International Conference on Harmonization Steering Committee and Expert Working Group Meetings in Fukuoka, Japan; Regional Public Meeting

AGENCY:

Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION:

Notice of public meeting.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing a public meeting entitled “Preparation for ICH Steering Committee and Expert Working Group Meetings in Fukuoka, Japan” to provide information and receive comments on the International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) as well as the upcoming meetings in Fukuoka, Japan. The topics to be discussed are the topics for discussion at the forthcoming ICH Steering Committee Meeting. The purpose of the meeting is to solicit public input prior to the next Steering Committee and Expert Working Group meetings in Fukuoka, Japan, scheduled on June 2 through 7, 2012, at which discussion of the topics underway and the future of ICH will continue.

DATES:

Date and Time: The public meeting will be held on May 14, 2012, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Location: The public meeting will be held at the FDA White Oak Campus, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 31, Conference Center, the Great Room (rm. 1503), Silver Spring, MD 20993. Information regarding visitor parking and transportation may be accessed at: http://www.fda.gov/​AboutFDA/​WorkingatFDA/​BuildingsandFacilities/​WhiteOakCampusInformation/​ucm241740.htm;​; under the heading “Public Meetings at the White Oak Campus.” Please note that visitors to the White Oak Campus must enter through Building 1.

Contact Person: All participants must register with Kimberly Franklin, Office of the Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002, FAX: [phone], email: [e-mail].

Registration and Requests for Oral Presentations: Send registration information (including name, title, firm name, address, telephone, and fax number), written material, and requests to make oral presentations to the contact person (see Contact Person) by May 9, 2012.

Interested persons may present data, information, or views orally or in writing, on issues pending at the public meeting. Public oral presentations will be scheduled between approximately 3:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. Time allotted for oral presentations may be limited to 10 minutes. Those desiring to make oral presentations should notify the contact person (see Contact Person) by May 9, 2012, and submit a brief statement of the general nature of the evidence or arguments they wish to present, the names and addresses, telephone number, fax, and email of proposed participants, and an indication of the approximate time requested to make their presentation.

If you need special accommodations due to a disability, please contact Kimberly Franklin (see Contact Person) at least 7 days in advance.

Transcripts: Please be advised that as soon as a transcript is available, it will be accessible at http://www.regulations.gov. It may be viewed at the Division of Dockets Management (HFA-305), Food and Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, rm. 1061, Rockville, MD. A transcript will also be available in either hardcopy or on CD-ROM, after submission of a Freedom of Information request. Written requests are to be sent to Division of Freedom of Information (ELEM-1029), Food and Drug Administration, 12420 Parklawn Dr., Element Bldg., Rockville, MD 20857.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The ICH was established in 1990 as a joint regulatory/industry project to improve, through harmonization, the efficiency of the process for developing and registering new medicinal products in Europe, Japan, and the United States without compromising the regulatory obligations of safety and effectiveness.

In recent years, many important initiatives have been undertaken by regulatory authorities and industry associations to promote international harmonization of regulatory requirements. FDA has participated in many meetings designed to enhance harmonization and is committed to seeking scientifically based harmonized technical procedures for pharmaceutical development. One of the goals of harmonization is to identify and then reduce differences in technical requirements for medical product development among regulatory Agencies. ICH was organized to provide an opportunity for harmonization initiatives to be developed with input from both regulatory and industry representatives. ICH is concerned with harmonization among three regions: The European Union, Japan, and the United States. The six ICH sponsors are the European Commission; the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries Associations; the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare; the Japanese Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association; the Centers for Drug Evaluation and Research and Biologics Evaluation and Research, FDA; and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. The ICH Secretariat, which coordinates the preparation of documentation, is provided by the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Associations. The ICH Steering Committee includes representatives from each of the ICH sponsors and Health Canada, the European Free Trade Area, and the World Health Organization. The ICH process has achieved significant harmonization of the technical requirements for the approval of pharmaceuticals for human use in the three ICH regions.

The current ICH process and structure can be found at the following Web site: http://www.ich.org. (FDA has verified the Web site addresses in this document, but FDA is not responsible for any subsequent changes to the Web sites after this document publishes in the Federal Register.)

The agenda for the public meeting will be made available on the Internet at http://www.fda.gov/​Drugs/​NewsEvents/​ucm291624.htm.

Dated: March 6, 2012.

Leslie Kux,

Acting Assistant Commissioner for Policy.