Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is a Washington, D.C., law firm providing biobased and renewable chemical product stakeholders unparalleled experience, judgment, and excellence in bringing innovative products to market.

By Lynn L. Bergeson

On March 9, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in collaboration with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), will host a public workshop titled “FDA/FTC Workshop on a Competitive Marketplace for Biosimilars.” The focus of the workshop will be on FDA and FTC’s collaborative efforts to support appropriate adoption of biosimilars, deter anticompetitive behaviors in the biologic marketplace, and discourage false or misleading statements about biosimilars. The workshop will take place in Silver Spring, MD, and requires registration. Webcast attendance will also be available. A meeting agenda is expected approximately one week before the meeting. FDA and FTC are also inviting stakeholders to submit electronic or written comments in addition to input at the public workshop. Comments are due on or prior to April 9, 2020.


 

By Lynn L. Bergeson

On November 15, 2019, Sarah Yim, M.D., acting director of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Therapeutic Biologics and Biosimilars in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, released a statement on FDA’s continued progress facilitating competition in the biologic marketplace with approval of its 25th biosimilar project. In her statement, Dr. Yim highlights FDA’s approval of one of nine new biosimilar products approved in 2019. Bringing the overall total of biosimilar approvals to 25, Dr. Yim states: “I’m pleased to see this progress and am confident that the market for these therapies will continue to grow.” Approved under FDA’s Biosimilar Product Development Program, the 25th biosimilar announced is one of 38 products that have been enrolled in the program. The program’s goal is to discuss development of proposed biosimilar products or interchangeable products, laying the foundation for ongoing competition in the marketplace.

Typically more complex than other drugs and developed through advanced science, biological products, commonly referred to as biologics, are generally made from natural or living sources, such as animal and plant cells, and microorganisms such as bacteria or yeast. Biologics and biosimilar products are highly similar to, and have no clinically meaningful differences from, existing FDA-approved biologic products called reference products. As part of FDA’s efforts to support these products, Dr. Yim also highlighted FDA’s work under the Biosimilars Action Plan. The work under this plan includes efforts to develop and implement new biosimilar-specific review templates and progress toward the development and validation of pharmacodynamic biomarkers tailored to biosimilar development. Part of these efforts involves FDA’s provision of scientific and regulatory clarity for the biosimilar development community, combined with communication and outreach education. Dr. Yim concludes: “The promise of biosimilar and interchangeable biological products in providing increased access to important therapies is great, and the FDA will continue to do all that we can to facilitate competition in this area.”


 

By Lynn L. Bergeson

On August 19, 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced in the Federal Register that a proposed collection of information on the Review Transparency and Communication in Reviews of 351(k) Biologics License Applications in Biosimilars User Fee Act has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This information collection supports the review program under the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA), which allows FDA to collect user fees for the review of human drug and biologics applications for fiscal years 2013 through 2021. OMB is now accepting comments on the collection of information until September 18, 2019.


 

By Lynn L. Bergeson

On May 22, 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced via the Federal Register the availability of a draft guidance for industry titled “Development of Therapeutic Protein Biosimilars: Comparative Analytical Assessment and Other Quality-Related Considerations.” The draft guidance is a revision of the 2015 guidance titled “Quality Considerations in Demonstrating Biosimilarity of a Therapeutic Protein Product to a Reference Product.” It provides recommendations on the design and evaluation of comparative analytical studies that intend to demonstrate that a proposed therapeutic protein product is biosimilar to a reference product licensed under the Public Health Service Act (PHS Act). Additionally, the draft guidance makes recommendations to sponsors on the scientific and technical information for the chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC) portion of a marketing application. Comments on the draft guidance are due on or prior to July 22, 2019.


 

By Lynn L. Bergeson

On May 13, 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued in final guidance designed to assist sponsors in demonstrating that a proposed biological product is interchangeable with a reference product for the purposes of submitting a marketing application or supplement. This would mean that an abbreviated licensure pathway would be created, where biological products shown to be biosimilar to or interchangeable with an FDA-licensed biological reference product may be submitted without intervention. The guidance focuses on therapeutic protein products, providing an overview of scientific considerations in showing interchangeability of a proposed therapeutic protein product with a reference product. It pertains to a series of guidance documents FDA is developing to implement the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009. This final guidance provides sponsors with more certainty on the development of these proposed interchangeable products. Its scope includes scientific considerations of:

  • The data and information needed to support a demonstration of interchangeability;
     
  • The design and analysis of a switching study or studies to support a demonstration of interchangeability;
     
  • The comparator product in a switching study or studies; and
     
  • The development of presentations, container closure systems, and delivery device constituent parts for proposed interchangeable products.