[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 24 (Friday, February 4, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-2469]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: February 4, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
 

Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces a forthcoming meeting of a public 
advisory committee of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This 
notice also summarizes the procedures for the meeting and methods by 
which interested persons may participate in open public hearings before 
FDA's advisory committees.

MEETING: The following advisory committee meeting is announced:

Science Board to the Food and Drug Administration

    Date, time, and place. February 23, 1994, 10 a.m., and February 24, 
1994, 8:30 a.m., Embassy Room III, Bethesda Ramada Inn, 8400 Wisconsin 
Ave., Bethesda, MD.
    Type of meeting and contact person. Open board discussion, February 
23, 1994, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; open public hearing, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., 
unless public participation does not last that long; open board 
discussion, February 24, 1994, 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.; closed board 
deliberations, 10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.; open board discussion, 11:45 
a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sheryl A. Rosenthal, Office of the Senior Advisor for 
Science (HF-33), Food and Drug Administration, 5600 Fishers Lane, 
Rockville, MD 20857, 301-443-5839.
    General function of the board. The board provides advice primarily 
to the agency's Senior Science Advisor and, as needed, to the 
Commissioner and other appropriate officials on specific complex and 
technical issues as well as emerging issues within the scientific 
community in industry and academia. Additionally, the board provides 
advice to the agency on keeping pace with technical and scientific 
evolutions in the fields of regulatory science; on formulating an 
appropriate research agenda; and on upgrading its scientific and 
research facilities to keep pace with these changes. It also provides a 
means for critical review of agency-sponsored intramural and extramural 
scientific research programs.
    Agenda--Open public hearing. Interested persons may present data, 
information, or views, orally or in writing, on issues pending before 
the board. Those desiring to make formal presentations must notify the 
contact person before February 14, 1994, and submit a brief statement 
of the general nature of the evidence or arguments they wish to 
present, the names and addresses of proposed participants, and an 
indication of the approximate time required to make their comments. 
Each presenter will be limited in time and not all requests to speak 
may be able to be accommodated. All written statements submitted by 
February 14, 1994, will be provided to the board.
    Open board discussion. The board will discuss both academic and 
industrial external interactions. These discussions are designed to 
enhance the scientific effectiveness of the agency.
    Closed board deliberations. The board may discuss matters that 
would disclose trade secrets or commercial or financial information 
obtained from a person that is privileged or confidential. This portion 
of the meeting will be closed to permit discussion of this information 
(5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(4)).
    Each public advisory committee meeting listed above may have as 
many as four separable portions: (1) An open public hearing, (2) an 
open committee discussion, (3) a closed presentation of data, and (4) a 
closed committee deliberation. Every advisory committee meeting shall 
have an open public hearing portion. Whether or not it also includes 
any of the other three portions will depend upon the specific meeting 
involved. The dates and times reserved for the separate portions of 
each committee meeting are listed above.
    The open public hearing portion of each meeting shall be at least 1 
hour long unless public participation does not last that long. It is 
emphasized, however, that the 1 hour time limit for an open public 
hearing represents a minimum rather than a maximum time for public 
participation, and an open public hearing may last for whatever longer 
period the committee chairperson determines will facilitate the 
committee's work.
    Public hearings are subject to FDA's guideline (subpart C of 21 CFR 
part 10) concerning the policy and procedures for electronic media 
coverage of FDA's public administrative proceedings, including hearings 
before public advisory committees under 21 CFR part 14. Under 21 CFR 
10.205, representatives of the electronic media may be permitted, 
subject to certain limitations, to videotape, film, or otherwise record 
FDA's public administrative proceedings, including presentations by 
participants.
    Meetings of advisory committees shall be conducted, insofar as is 
practical, in accordance with the agenda published in this Federal 
Register notice. Changes in the agenda will be announced at the 
beginning of the open portion of a meeting.
    Any interested person who wishes to be assured of the right to make 
an oral presentation at the open public hearing portion of a meeting 
shall inform the contact person listed above, either orally or in 
writing, prior to the meeting. Any person attending the hearing who 
does not in advance of the meeting request an opportunity to speak will 
be allowed to make an oral presentation at the hearing's conclusion, if 
time permits, at the chairperson's discretion.
    The agenda, the questions to be addressed by the committee, and a 
current list of committee members will be available at the meeting 
location on the day of the meeting.
    Transcripts of the open portion of the meeting may be requested in 
writing from the Freedom of Information Office (HFI-35), Food and Drug 
Administration, rm. 12A-16, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857, 
approximately 15 working days after the meeting, at a cost of 10 cents 
per page. The transcript may be viewed at the Dockets Management Branch 
(HFA-305), Food and Drug Administration, rm. 1-23, 12420 Parklawn Dr., 
Rockville, MD 20857, approximately 15 working days after the meeting, 
between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Summary 
minutes of the open portion of the meeting may be requested in writing 
from the Freedom of Information Office (address above) beginning 
approximately 90 days after the meeting.
    The Commissioner has determined for the reasons stated that those 
portions of the advisory committee meetings so designated in this 
notice shall be closed. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (5 
U.S.C. app. 2, 10(d)), permits such closed advisory committee meetings 
in certain circumstances. Those portions of a meeting designated as 
closed, however, shall be closed for the shortest possible time, 
consistent with the intent of the cited statutes.
    The FACA, as amended, provides that a portion of a meeting may be 
closed where the matter for discussion involves a trade secret; 
commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential; 
information of a personal nature, disclosure of which would be a 
clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy; investigatory files 
compiled for law enforcement purposes; information the premature 
disclosure of which would be likely to significantly frustrate 
implementation of a proposed agency action; and information in certain 
other instances not generally relevant to FDA matters.
    Examples of portions of FDA advisory committee meetings that 
ordinarily may be closed, where necessary and in accordance with FACA 
criteria, include the review, discussion, and evaluation of drafts of 
regulations or guidelines or similar preexisting internal agency 
documents, but only if their premature disclosure is likely to 
significantly frustrate implementation of proposed agency action; 
review of trade secrets and confidential commercial or financial 
information submitted to the agency; consideration of matters involving 
investigatory files compiled for law enforcement purposes; and review 
of matters, such as personnel records or individual patient records, 
where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of 
personal privacy.
    Examples of portions of FDA advisory committee meetings that 
ordinarily shall not be closed include the review, discussion, and 
evaluation of general preclinical and clinical test protocols and 
procedures for a class of drugs or devices; consideration of labeling 
requirements for a class of marketed drugs or devices; review of data 
and information on specific investigational or marketed drugs and 
devices that have previously been made public; presentation of any 
other data or information that is not exempt from public disclosure 
pursuant to the FACA, as amended; and, deliberation to formulate advice 
and recommendations to the agency on matters that do not independently 
justify closing.
    This notice is issued under section 10(a)(1) and (2) of the Federal 
Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. app. 2), and FDA's regulations (21 CFR 
part 14) on advisory committees.

    Dated: January 31, 1994.
Jane E. Henney,
Deputy Commissioner for Operations.
[FR Doc. 94-2469 Filed 2-3-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-01-F