On November 14, lawyers from Teva Pharmaceuticals and Covington & Burling discussed digital health innovation from a medical device regulation perspective in the U.S. and the EU. The presentation by Rachel Turow, Executive Counsel – Regulatory Law, Teva Pharmaceuticals, and Grant Castle, Scott Danzis, Sarah Cowlishaw, and Christina Kuhn of Covington, covered topics such as which digital health products the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) regulates, how “device” is defined by the recent 21st Century Cures Act, and the relationship between medical devices and software under EU law. The group also discussed how digital health associated with pharmaceuticals may implicate regulatory considerations under FDA’s drug authorities — a topic to be more fully explored at an upcoming Covington Digital Health webinar in early 2018.

Some of the key takeaways the panel discussed are:

  • Understanding a digital health product’s intended uses and functionalities is critical to whether product will be regulated.
  • The CDRH’s approach to digital health is evolving, and CDRH has adopted a more flexible approach to digital health as compared to other product areas.
  • The FDA isn’t the only regulator to consider — other regulators such as FTC, CPSC, state AGs, and DOJ are becoming more engaged in this area.
  • Companies marketing or expecting to market products in the EU should design new software medical devices with the EU’s Medical Device Regulation in mind.

This is the second of a series of webinars Covington is offering to help companies navigate the laws, regulations, and policies that govern the evolving Digital Health sector. The webinars are aimed at:

  • Legal, regulatory, and policy teams at life sciences and technology companies involved in the development and marketing of digital health technologies
  • Legal, regulatory, and policy professionals with backgrounds in the “traditional” pharma-biotech and medical device space, who are looking to move into the digital health space

If you would like to view a recording of this one hour webinar, please contact Jordyn Pedersen at jpedersen@cov.com.

 

Photo of Grant Castle Grant Castle

Grant Castle is a partner in London and Dublin practicing in the areas of EU, UK and Irish life sciences regulatory law. He supports innovative pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device and diagnostics manufacturers on regulatory, compliance, legislative, policy, market access and public law litigation…

Grant Castle is a partner in London and Dublin practicing in the areas of EU, UK and Irish life sciences regulatory law. He supports innovative pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device and diagnostics manufacturers on regulatory, compliance, legislative, policy, market access and public law litigation matters in the EU, UK, and Irish Courts.

He is one of the Co-chairs of Covington’s Life Sciences Industry Group and is Head of Covington’s European Life Sciences Regulatory Practice.

Grant regularly advises on:

  • EU and UK regulatory pathways to market for pharmaceuticals and medical devices, including in vitro diagnostics and on associated product life cycle management;
  • Pharmaceutical GxPs, including those governing pharmacovigilance, manufacturing, the supply chain and both clinical and non-clinical research;
  • Medical device CE and UKCA marking, quality systems, device vigilance and rules governing clinical investigations and performance evaluations of medical devices and in vitro diagnostics;
  • Advertising and promotion of both pharmaceuticals and medical devices; and
  • Pricing, reimbursement and market access for both pharmaceuticals and medical devices.

Grant also handles procedural matters before EU, UK and Irish regulators and UK and Irish market access bodies, where necessary bringing judicial reviews for his life sciences clients before the EU, UK and Irish Courts.

Chambers UK has ranked Grant in Band 1 for Life Sciences Regulatory for the last 18 years. He is recognized by Chambers UK, Life Sciences as “excellent,” “a knowledgeable lawyer with a strong presence in the industry,” who provides “absolutely first-rate regulatory advice,” according to sources, who also describe him as “one of the key players in that area,” whilst Chambers Global sources report that “he worked in the sector for many years, and has a thorough understanding of how the industry ticks.” He is praised by clients for his “absolutely first-rate” European regulatory practice. Legal 500 UK notes that he is “highly competent in understanding legal and technical biological issues.”

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Photo of Sarah Cowlishaw Sarah Cowlishaw

Advising clients on a broad range of life sciences matters, Sarah Cowlishaw supports innovative pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, diagnostic and software technology companies on regulatory, compliance, transactional, and legislative matters.

Sarah has particular expertise in advising on legal issues presented by digital health…

Advising clients on a broad range of life sciences matters, Sarah Cowlishaw supports innovative pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, diagnostic and software technology companies on regulatory, compliance, transactional, and legislative matters.

Sarah has particular expertise in advising on legal issues presented by digital health technologies, helping companies navigate regulatory frameworks while balancing challenges presented by the pace of technological change over legislative developments.

Sarah is a co-chair of Covington’s multidisciplinary Digital Health Initiative, and is the Graduate Recruitment Partner for Covington’s London office.

Sarah regularly advises on:

  • classification determinations for software medical devices, including on developments resulting from the implementation of the EU Medical Devices Regulation;
  • legal issues presented by digital health technologies including artificial intelligence;
  • general regulatory matters for the pharma and device industry, including borderline determinations, adverse event and other reporting obligations, manufacturing controls, and labeling and promotion;
  • the full range of agreements that span the product life-cycle in the life sciences sector, including collaborations and other strategic agreements, clinical trial agreements, and manufacturing and supply agreements; and
  • regulatory and commercial due diligence for life sciences transactions.

Sarah’s pro bono work includes advising the Restoration of Appearance and Function Trust (RAFT) on the classification of a wound healing product containing human blood derivatives, and assisting in a project aimed at improving regulatory systems for clinical trials of drugs and vaccines for neglected diseases in developing countries.

Sarah has been recognized as one of the UK’s Rising Stars by Law.com (2021), which lists 25 up and coming female lawyers in the UK. She was named among the Hot 100 by The Lawyer (2020) and was included in the 50 Movers & Shakers in BioBusiness 2019 for advancing legal thinking for digital health.

Sarah has undertaken several client secondments, including to the in-house legal department of a multinational pharmaceutical company.

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Photo of Scott Danzis Scott Danzis

Scott Danzis practice focuses primarily on the regulation of medical devices, but also includes regulation of drugs, biologics, and tobacco products. Mr. Danzis regularly works with companies in developing strategies for interacting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), including strategies for…

Scott Danzis practice focuses primarily on the regulation of medical devices, but also includes regulation of drugs, biologics, and tobacco products. Mr. Danzis regularly works with companies in developing strategies for interacting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), including strategies for clinical development and premarket review (including appeals and dispute resolution, when needed). He also advises on compliance with postmarket requirements, including advertising and promotion restrictions, quality system and manufacturing requirements, postmarket reporting, recalls, and enforcement actions.

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Photo of Christina Kuhn Christina Kuhn

Christina Kuhn provides pharmaceutical and medical device companies advice on a variety of federal and state regulatory matters.

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