[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 79 (Thursday, April 23, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22740-22741]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-08609]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2019-D-5392]


Interpreting Sameness of Gene Therapy Products Under the Orphan 
Drug Regulations; Draft Guidance for Industry; Extension of Comment 
Period

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or Agency) is extending 
the comment period for the notice of availability entitled 
``Interpreting Sameness of Gene Therapy Products Under the Orphan Drug 
Regulations; Draft Guidance for Industry'' that appeared in the Federal 
Register of January 30, 2020. The Agency is taking this action to allow 
interested persons additional time to submit comments.

DATES: FDA is extending the comment period on the notice published 
January 30, 2020 (85 FR 5445). Submit either electronic or written 
comments on the draft guidance by July 28, 2020, to ensure that the 
Agency considers your comment on this draft guidance before it begins 
work on the final version of the guidance.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on any guidance at any time as 
follows:

Electronic Submissions

    Submit electronic comments in the following way:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Comments submitted 
electronically, including attachments, to https://www.regulations.gov 
will be posted to the docket unchanged. Because your comment will be 
made public, you are solely responsible for ensuring that your comment 
does not include any confidential information that you or a third party 
may not wish to be posted, such as medical information, your or anyone 
else's Social Security number, or confidential business information, 
such as a manufacturing process. Please note that if you include your 
name, contact information, or other information that identifies you in 
the body of your comments, that information will be posted on https://www.regulations.gov.
     If you want to submit a comment with confidential 
information that you do not wish to be made available to the public, 
submit the comment as a written/paper submission and in the manner 
detailed (see ``Written/Paper Submissions'' and ``Instructions'').

Written/Paper Submissions

    Submit written/paper submissions as follows:
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier (for written/paper 
submissions): Dockets Management Staff (HFA-305), Food and Drug 
Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
     For written/paper comments submitted to the Dockets 
Management Staff, FDA will post your comment, as well as any 
attachments, except for information submitted, marked and identified, 
as confidential, if submitted as detailed in ``Instructions.''
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket No. 
FDA-2019-D-5392 for ``Interpreting Sameness of Gene Therapy Products 
Under the Orphan Drug Regulations.'' Received comments will be placed 
in the docket and, except for those submitted as ``Confidential 
Submissions,'' publicly viewable at https://www.regulations.gov or at 
the Dockets Management Staff between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through 
Friday.
     Confidential Submissions--To submit a comment with 
confidential information that you do not wish to be made publicly 
available, submit your comments only as a written/paper submission. You 
should submit two copies total. One copy will include the information 
you claim to be confidential with a heading or cover note that states 
``THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.'' The Agency will 
review this copy, including the claimed confidential information, in 
its consideration of comments. The second copy, which will have the 
claimed confidential information redacted/blacked out, will be 
available for public viewing and posted on https://www.regulations.gov. 
Submit both copies to the Dockets Management Staff. If you do not wish 
your name and contact information to be made publicly available, you 
can provide this information on the cover sheet and not in the body of 
your comments and you must identify this information as 
``confidential.'' Any information marked as ``confidential'' will not 
be disclosed except in accordance with 21 CFR 10.20 and other 
applicable disclosure law. For more information about FDA's posting of 
comments to public dockets, see 80 FR 56469, September 18, 2015, or 
access the information at: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2015-09-18/pdf/2015-23389.pdf.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
the electronic and written/paper comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov and insert the docket number, found in brackets in 
the heading of this document, into the ``Search'' box and follow the 
prompts and/or go to the Dockets Management Staff, 5630 Fishers Lane, 
Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
    You may submit comments on any guidance at any time (see 21 CFR 
10.115(g)(5)).
    Submit written requests for single copies of the draft guidance to 
the Office of Communication, Outreach and

[[Page 22741]]

Development, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and 
Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 71, Rm. 3128, 
Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002. Send one self-addressed adhesive label to 
assist that office in processing your requests. See the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section for electronic access to the draft guidance 
document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shruti Modi, Center for Biologics 
Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New 
Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 71, Rm. 7301, Silver Spring, MD 20993, 240-402-
7911.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    In the Federal Register of January 30, 2020 (85 FR 5445), FDA 
published a notice with a 90-day comment period to request comments on 
the document entitled ``Interpreting Sameness of Gene Therapy Products 
Under the Orphan Drug Regulations; Draft Guidance for Industry.'' FDA 
is extending the comment period, in response to a request from a 
stakeholder, until July 22, 2020. The Agency believes that a 90-day 
extension allows adequate time for interested persons to submit 
comments without significantly delaying publication of the final 
version of the guidance.

II. Reference

    The following reference is on display in the Dockets Management 
Staff (see ADDRESSES) and is available for viewing by interested 
persons between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday; it is also 
available electronically at https://www.regulations.gov.

    1. Email from Mr. Aleksandr Merenkov, Regulatory Intelligence 
Specialist, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc., to Jenifer Roe, 
Regulatory Counsel, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, 
FDA (March 26, 2020).

II. Electronic Access

    Persons with access to the internet may obtain the draft guidance 
at https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/guidance-compliance-regulatory-information-biologics/biologics-guidances, or https://www.regulations.gov.

    Dated: April 16, 2020.
Lowell J. Schiller,
Principal Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2020-08609 Filed 4-22-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4164-01-P