• where experts go to learn about FDA
  • Year: 2010

    • Yes, e-cigarettes are Tobacco Products (Not Drugs/Devices)December 9th, 2010

      By Ricardo Carvajal – The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the D.C. District Court’s grant of an injunction that bars FDA's regulation of e-cigarettes as drug/device products absent claims of intended use to that effect (for our prior posting on the district court decision, see …

    • The Value of GRASDecember 9th, 2010

      The Washington Legal Foundation recently published an article written by HPM attorneys, Ricardo Carvajal and Nisha P. Shah, on the February 2010 Government Accountability Office ("GAO") report that criticized FDA's general oversight of uses of ingredients that are generally recognized as safe (“GRAS”) and the agency's …

    • Congress Passes Legislation to Alter Red Flags RuleDecember 9th, 2010

      By William T. Koustas – The Red Flags Rule (“the Rule”) requires entities covered by it to establish and implement an identity theft prevention program.  We have been following this issue for some time now and have previously reported that the FTC last delayed enforcement of …

    • Drug Purchasers Petition U.S. Supreme Court to Consider CIPRO Patent Settlement CaseDecember 8th, 2010

      By Kurt R. Karst –       Speculation was running high that the U.S. Supreme Court would be petitioned on whether a patent settlement agreement (what opponents call “pay-for-delay” agreements or “reverse payments”) involving manufacturers of Ciprofloxacin HCl (CIPRO) is per se lawful under the Sherman Act after …

    • FDA Publishes Annual Guidance AgendaDecember 8th, 2010

      By Ricardo Carvajal – As required by its Good Guidance Practices regulation, FDA published its annual guidance document agenda and request for comment on “possible topics for future guidance document development or revisions of existing [guidance documents].”  Among the food-related topics that caught our eye are new …

    • McNeil Petitions the U.S. Supreme Court on OTC Drug Labeling Failure-to-Warn Preemption IssueDecember 7th, 2010

      By Kurt R. Karst –       Does “federal law, which imposes a strict set of labeling requirements on manufacturers of Final Monograph [Over-the-Counter (‘OTC’)] drugs, including mandatory product warnings authored by the FDA, [preempt] state-law product liability actions premised on theories of failure to warn[?]”  That is …

    • The Cost of Inadequate SubstantiationDecember 7th, 2010

      Hyman, Phelps & McNamara’s Paul Hyman and Ricardo Carvajal recently published an article in Food Chemical News on the cost of inadequate substantiation of health-related claims made in the labeling and advertising of foods.  Although FDA appears reluctant to take an aggressive stance with respect …

    • Federal Judge Orders that Genetically Modified Sugar Beet Seedlings be Pulled from the GroundDecember 6th, 2010

      By Ricardo Carvajal – In a strongly worded opinion, a federal judge has ordered that genetically modified sugar beet stecklings (seedlings) planted pursuant to permits issued by USDA be pulled from the ground.  As we noted in a prior blog posting, USDA/APHIS was found in violation …

    • Food Safety Legislation Hits a RoadblockDecember 2nd, 2010

      By Ricardo Carvajal No sooner had we blogged on Senate passage of the Food Safety Modernization Act than Roll Call reported that the bill might be doomed by a constitutional flaw – namely that § 107 of the bill proposes fees, and Article I, section 7 …

    • DEA Announces Emergency Scheduling of Synthetic CannabinoidsDecember 2nd, 2010

      By Karla L. Palmer and Peter M. Jaensch On November 24, 2010, using its emergency authority under section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) (21 U.S.C. § 812), the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) published a Notice of Intent to temporarily place five synthetic cannabinoids in Schedule …

    • The DEA Opines on a Pharmacist’s “Corresponding Responsibility”December 1st, 2010

      By John A. Gilbert & Karla L. Palmer – The Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) recently published a decision that considers the scope of a pharmacist’s “corresponding responsibility” under 21 C.F.R. § 1306.04(a).  East Main Street Pharmacy (Affirmance of Suspension Order) (Docket No. 09-48) (75 Fed. Reg. …

    • Color Warnings on Hyperactivity Coming to a Food Near You?December 1st, 2010

      By Ricardo Carvajal -  FDA announced that its Food Advisory Committee will meet on March 30 and 31, 2011, “to discuss whether available relevant data demonstrate a link between children’s consumption of synthetic color additives in food and adverse effects on behavior.”  Earlier this year, the European …

    • Minnesota Lawmakers Send Letter to FDA with Concerns About the 510(k) ProcessNovember 30th, 2010

      By Jeffrey K. Shapiro & Carmelina G. Allis – FDA’s review of 510(k) program continues to cause concern in Congress.  On November 24, 2010, the Minnesota delegation, including unlikely collaborators Senator Al Franken and Representative Michele Bachmann, sent a letter to Dr. Hamburg asking “FDA to review …

    • U.S. Senate Advances Food Safety LegislationNovember 30th, 2010

      By Ricardo Carvajal – By a vote of 73 to 25 (see the roll call here), the Senate has passed S. 510, the Food Safety Modernization Act.  As we noted in a prior posting, the Senate HELP Committee released a compromise agreement in August that would …

    • A Repeat! ABA Journal Names FDA Law Blog to “Blawg 100”November 30th, 2010

        Thanks to our faithful readers, we made the list for the annual American Bar Association (“ABA”) Journal Blawg 100 for the second year in a row.  The editors of the ABA Journal announced the top 100 best law blogs by lawyers, for lawyers earlier this …