Posts Tagged ‘guidance’

REMS Assessments: Insights and Strategies for a Successful Survey Program

Wednesday, May 12th, 2010

REMS Assessments are now the hot topic in REMS.  We’ve reached the 18-month mark and it’s not a coincidence that Draft Guidance includes a section on assessments and modifications.  Companies need to begin to contemplate not just how to analyze and interpret their assessment findings, but they need to think about the best way to actually evaluate their REMS performance.  (more…)

Organizing for REMS Effectiveness: A View from the Field

Tuesday, March 30th, 2010

- Guest blog by Andrea J. Simon, PhD -

This blog by Andrea Simon, PhD, a corporate anthropologist, is one in a series that ParagonRx has initiated to help our readers better understand some of the trends taking place in the field of Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) and risk management under the FDA  draft guidance.  We know you will find them of value and encourage you to comment on them.

In April, ParagonRx is hosting its Wednesday FoREMS webinar on the topic of organizing to effectively manage Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS).  And, in May, the Wednesday FoREMS will host a panel of industry leaders discussing how their organizations are building REMS capabilities and resourcing them in their product development and commercialization functions.  In preparation for these upcoming webinars, I thought I would share with you some of my observations from the field and encourage you to share your own company’s perspectives on how you are reorganizing to create and effectively manage REMS. (more…)

REMS Assessments

Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

As we advise clients about REMS design and implementation, the most frequent concern we encounter is related to REMS assessment.  A look at the math reveals why this is so.  Over 63 REMS have been approved since FDAAA statutes for REMS became effective in March 2008.  Of those, more than 90% are comprised of Medication Guides and/or Communication Plans, plus an assessment.  (more…)

FDA’s Draft Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) Guidance – A Preliminary Review (Part V)

Thursday, October 15th, 2009

On September 30th, FDA issued draft guidance, “Format and Content of Proposed Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS), REMS Assessments and Proposed REMS Modifications”. While much of this draft guidance is a codification of what’s already been happening in practice over the past 2 years, there are some interesting aspects in the guidance for those working in the REMS space to contemplate. This is the fifth in an ongoing series of blog articles about this important document.

Our first four articles covered the background of FDAAA and REMS, an overview of a REMS submission and greater detail about the “Proposed REMS” and “REMS Supporting Document”, and REMS submissions and communications with FDA.

In this fifth and final article, we address our preliminary interpretation of the draft guidance, as well as opportunities for industry to respond and propose further improvements. (more…)

FDA’s Draft Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) Guidance – A Preliminary Review (Part IV)

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

On September 30th, FDA issued draft guidance, “Format and Content of Proposed Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS), REMS Assessments and Proposed REMS Modifications”. While much of this draft guidance is a codification of what’s already been happening in practice over the past 2 years, there are a few interesting surprises (depicted in bold below) for those working in the REMS space to contemplate. This is the fourth in an ongoing series of blog articles about this important document.

Our first three articles covered the background of FDAAA and REMS, an overview of a REMS submission and greater detail about the “Proposed REMS”, and “REMS Supporting Document” components of the REMS document submission. This article covers the section of the guidance about “REMS assessment and modification submissions” and “communicating with FDA”. (more…)

FDA’s Draft Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) Guidance – A Preliminary Review (Part III)

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

On September 30th, FDA issued its long awaited draft guidance, “Format and Content of Proposed Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS), REMS Assessments and Proposed REMS Modifications”. While much of this draft guidance is a codification of what’s already been happening in practice over the past 2 years, there are a few interesting surprises (depicted in bold below) for those working in the REMS space to contemplate. This is the third in an ongoing series of blog articles about this important document.

Our first two articles covered the background of FDAAA and REMS relative to RiskMAPs and those RiskMAPs deemed to be REMS, an overview of a REMS submission, and greater detail about the more concise “proposed REMS” component of the REMS document submission. This article details the content of the more comprehensive “REMS Supporting Document”, which explains the rationale for, and supporting information about, the proposed REMS. A template for the REMS Supporting Document can be found on the www.fda.gov website. (more…)

FDA’s Draft Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) Guidance – A Preliminary Review (Part II)

Monday, October 5th, 2009

On September 30th, FDA issued its long awaited draft guidance, “Format and Content of Proposed Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS), REMS Assessments and Proposed REMS Modifications”. While much of this draft guidance is a codification of what’s already been happening in practice over the past two years, there are a few interesting surprises (depicted in bold below) for those working in the REMS space to contemplate. This is the second in an ongoing series of blog articles about this important document.

Our first article covered the background of FDAAA and REMS relative to RiskMAPs and those RiskMAPs deemed to be REMS, as well as an overview of a REMS submission. This second article addresses, in greater detail, the more concise “proposed REMS” component of the REMS document submission. The more expanded “REMS supporting document”, explaining the rationale for, and supporting information about, the proposed REMS being addressed in the next article. (more…)

FDA’s Draft Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) Guidance – A Preliminary Review (Part I)

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

FDA issued its long awaited draft guidance, “Format and Content of Proposed Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS), REMS Assessments and Proposed REMS Modifications”, on September 30. While much of the guidance is codification of what’s already been happening in practice over the past two years, there are a few surprises (indicated here in bold) for all of us working in the REMS space to contemplate. This is the first in a series of blog posts about this important document. (more…)

Contingency Planning: Strategies to Negotiate the Barriers to Product Approval

Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009

In a constantly changing regulatory environment, having a well planned contingency strategy is vital for successful Food and Drug Administration (FDA) negotiations. Today, this is more important than ever. The FDA is asking companies to prepare Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) to help ensure patient safety, and has issued a documentation template, but has yet to provide further guidance to the industry on how such REMS should be developed. (more…)

REMS Programs for Opioid Drugs?

Thursday, February 19th, 2009

REMS programs for opioid drugs? A worthy approach but many questions remain to be answered.

Developing an effective REMS program – one designed to preserve access for every person who would benefit from a medication while avoiding exposure in situations and individuals with excessive risk factors – is a challenge. The difficulty increases when the risks expand beyond inadvertent misuse to also include intentional abuse.

Recently the FDA signaled its intent to tackle risks involving opioids that have both significant benefits for certain segments of patients and also the potential for misuse and abuse. On March 3, the FDA will sit down with 15 manufacturers of 24 opioid medications to begin the process of outfitting them with REMS.
(more…)