[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 96 (Thursday, May 18, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31764-31766]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-10610]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2005-D-0460]


Pediatric Drug Development: Regulatory Considerations--Complying 
With the Pediatric Research Equity Act and Qualifying for Pediatric 
Exclusivity Under the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act; Draft 
Guidance for Industry; Availability

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing the 
availability of a draft guidance for industry entitled ``Pediatric Drug 
Development: Regulatory Considerations--Complying With the Pediatric 
Research Equity Act and Qualifying for Pediatric Exclusivity Under the 
Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act.'' This draft guidance, when 
finalized, is intended to provide recommendations to industry on 
complying with the pediatric study requirements under the Pediatric 
Research Equity Act (PREA), and to describe the process for qualifying 
for pediatric exclusivity and the protections that pediatric 
exclusivity offers under the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act 
(BPCA). Combining discussion of PREA and the BPCA together in 
regulatory guidance emphasizes the sponsor's need to consider both laws 
when developing pediatric drugs and biological products.

DATES: Submit either electronic or written comments on the draft 
guidance by July 17, 2023 to ensure that the Agency considers your 
comment on this draft guidance before it begins work on the final 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-2005-D-0460 for ``Pediatric Drug Development: Regulatory 
Considerations--Complying With the Pediatric Research Equity Act and 
Qualifying for Pediatric Exclusivity Under the Best Pharmaceuticals for 
Children Act.'' 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, 240-402-7500.
     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, 240-402-7500.

[[Page 31765]]

    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 Division of Drug Information, Center for Drug Evaluation and 
Research, Food and Drug Administration, 10001 New Hampshire Ave., 
Hillandale Building, 4th Floor, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002, or the 
Office of Communication, Outreach, and 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: Rosemary Addy, Center for Drug 
Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New 
Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 22, Rm. 6430, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002, 301-
796-1640, [email protected]; or Diane Maloney, Center for Biologics 
Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New 
Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 71, Rm. 7301, Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002, 240-
402-7911.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    FDA is announcing the availability of a draft guidance for industry 
entitled ``Pediatric Drug Development: Regulatory Considerations--
Complying With the Pediatric Research Equity Act and Qualifying for 
Pediatric Exclusivity Under the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children 
Act.'' This draft guidance is intended to provide recommendations on 
how to comply with the pediatric study requirements under sections 505B 
of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) (21 U.S.C. 355c) 
(PREA), and to qualify for pediatric exclusivity under section 505A of 
the FD&C Act (21 U.S.C. 355a) (BPCA). This guidance also incorporates 
recommendations based on FDA's Retrospective Review.\1\
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    \1\ This review was conducted pursuant to section 505B(f)(5) of 
the FD&C Act and is described in more detail in a report available 
at https://www.fda.gov/media/78050/download.
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    PREA requires that certain applications (or supplements to 
applications) submitted under section 505 of the FD&C Act (21 U.S.C. 
355) or under section 351 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
262) (specifically, any application that is subject to PREA) must 
either include pediatric assessments or reports on the molecularly 
targeted pediatric cancer investigation (as appropriate), or a request 
for waiver and/or deferral (see section 505B(a)(1), (a)(4), and (a)(5) 
of the FD&C Act). To ensure that sponsors thoroughly consider a 
pediatric clinical development program earlier in their overall 
clinical development program, PREA requires sponsors to submit an 
initial pediatric study plan during the investigational phase of 
development (see section 505B(e) of the FD&C Act). PREA also authorizes 
FDA to require holders of approved applications for drugs and 
biological products, who are not seeking approval for one of the 
changes specified, to submit pediatric assessments under certain 
circumstances (see section 505B(b) of the FD&C Act).
    Under the BPCA, certain applications may qualify for 6 months of 
exclusivity if the following conditions are met: (1) FDA determines 
that information relating to the use of a drug in the pediatric 
population may produce health benefits in that population; (2) FDA 
issues a written request (WR) for studies of that drug in pediatric 
populations and the applicant agrees to the request; (3) the studies 
are completed using appropriate formulations for each age group and 
within the requested time; and (4) the reports of the studies are 
submitted and accepted by FDA (see section 505A(b)(1) and (c)(1) of the 
FD&C Act). In accepting or rejecting the reports, FDA determines 
whether the studies fairly respond to the WR, have been reported in 
accordance with filing requirements, and otherwise qualify for 
pediatric exclusivity (see section 505A(d)(4) of the FD&C Act).
    With respect to content, this draft guidance addresses pediatric 
assessments, molecularly targeted pediatric cancer investigations, 
pediatric study plans, waivers and deferrals (including deferral 
extensions), labeling considerations, the noncompliance process, the 
relationship of the PREA requirements to pediatric exclusivity, and the 
reporting of adverse events for products subject to PREA and the BPCA. 
Additionally, the draft guidance includes a description of the 
mechanisms FDA uses to obtain pediatric studies, how industry can 
obtain a WR and what it includes, how study reports should be submitted 
to FDA for filing, the criteria to qualify for pediatric exclusivity, 
the nature and scope of pediatric exclusivity, and the information that 
should be submitted in support of a request for a pediatric exclusivity 
determination.
    With respect to its discussion of PREA, this guidance, along with 
the draft guidance for industry entitled ``Pediatric Drug Development 
Under the Pediatric Research Equity Act and the Best Pharmaceuticals 
for Children Act: Scientific Considerations,'' revises and replaces the 
draft guidance for industry entitled ``How to Comply With the Pediatric 
Research Equity Act'' (2005 draft guidance; 70 FR 53233, September 7, 
2005).\2\ In addition to addressing certain PREA-related topics covered 
in the 2005 draft guidance, this draft guidance also addresses certain 
changes to PREA that have occurred since 2005.
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    \2\ This guidance also addresses certain topics previously 
addressed in the guidance for industry entitled ``Qualifying for 
Pediatric Exclusivity Under Section 505A of the Federal Food, Drug, 
and Cosmetic Act.'' That guidance was withdrawn August 7, 2013 (78 
FR 48175).
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    This draft guidance is being issued consistent with FDA's good 
guidance practices regulation (21 CFR 10.115). The draft guidance, when 
finalized, will represent the current thinking of FDA on ``Pediatric 
Drug Development: Regulatory Considerations--Complying With the 
Pediatric Research Equity Act and Qualifying for Pediatric Exclusivity 
Under the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act.'' It does not 
establish any rights for any person and is not binding on FDA or the 
public. You can use an alternative approach if it satisfies the 
requirements of the applicable statutes and regulations.

II. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    While this guidance contains no collection of information, it does 
refer to previously approved FDA collections of information. Therefore, 
clearance by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521) is not 
required for this guidance. The previously approved collections of 
information are subject to review by OMB under the PRA. The collections 
of information in 21 CFR part 312 for investigational new drug 
applications and 21 CFR part 314 for new drug applications and 
abbreviated new drug applications have been approved under OMB control 
numbers 0910-0014 and 0910-0001, respectively. The collections of 
information in 21 CFR parts 601 and 610 pertaining to biologics license 
applications have been approved under OMB control number 0910-0338. The 
collections of information in 42 U.S.C. 262(k) for biosimilar 
applications have been approved under OMB control number 0910-0718. The 
collections of information in 21 CFR 201.56 and 201.57 regarding 
labeling requirements for prescription drugs have been approved under 
OMB control number 0910-0572. The collections of

[[Page 31766]]

information in 21 CFR part 201, subpart C regarding over-the-counter 
products have been approved under OMB control number 0910-0340. The 
collections of information in 21 CFR part 316 regarding orphan drug 
product development have been approved under OMB control number 0910-
0167.

III. Electronic Access

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

    Dated: May 15, 2023.
Lauren K. Roth,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2023-10610 Filed 5-17-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4164-01-P