Recent Media Reports of Interest

New media reports have addressed topical issues around drug safety and the approval of medical devices:

• "New drug regulator asks Congress for more power" is a Reuters report by Anna Yukhananov dated Friday 29 June and commenting on Deborah Autor's continuing  attempts to obtain the power to stop medicines at the border if their manufacturers refused FDA inspections, and the power to order mandatory recalls of unsafe products. (Ms. Autor was recently appointed Deputy Commissioner for Global Operations and Policy at the U.S Food & Drug Administration.)

• "FDA to seek public comment on IOM recommendations" is a media release issued by the U.S. Food & Drug Adminstration on June 29. The agency intends to seek public comment on the report issued by the Institute of Medicine entitled Medical Devices and the Public’s Health: The FDA 510(k) Clearance Process at 35 Years.

• "Flawed medical device approval process needs public comments, says the FDA" is a commentary dated July 30 appearing in Medical News TODAY on the Institute of Medicine's report above-mentioned and the FDA's response.

• "Federal panel calls for overhaul in medical-device regulation" is an article by Thomas M. Burton that appeared in the Wall Street Journal on July 29, again commenting on the report from the Institute of Medicine.