Determination of Regulatory Review Period for Purposes of Patent Extension; ZERBAXA, 56253-56255 [2017-25682]
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 227 / Tuesday, November 28, 2017 / Notices
with the initial submission of an
application to market the human drug
product and continues until FDA grants
permission to market the drug product.
Although only a portion of a regulatory
review period may count toward the
actual amount of extension that the
Director of USPTO may award (for
example, half the testing phase must be
subtracted as well as any time that may
have occurred before the patent was
issued), FDA’s determination of the
length of a regulatory review period for
a human drug product will include all
of the testing phase and approval phase
as specified in 35 U.S.C. 156(g)(1)(B).
FDA has approved for marketing the
human drug product SAVAYSA
(edoxaban tosylate monohydrate).
SAVAYSA is indicated to reduce the
risk of stroke and systemic embolism in
patients with nonvalvular atrial
fibrillation and is also indicated for the
treatment of deep vein thrombosis and
pulmonary embolism following 5–10
days of initial therapy with a parenteral
anticoagulant. Subsequent to this
approval, the USPTO received a patent
term restoration application for
SAVAYSA (U.S. Patent No. 7,365,205)
from Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd., and the
USPTO requested FDA’s assistance in
determining this patent’s eligibility for
patent term restoration. In a letter dated
July 12, 2016, FDA advised the USPTO
that this human drug product had
undergone a regulatory review period
and that the approval of SAVAYSA
represented the first permitted
commercial marketing or use of the
product. Thereafter, the USPTO
requested that FDA determine the
product’s regulatory review period.
ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES
II. Determination of Regulatory Review
Period
FDA has determined that the
applicable regulatory review period for
SAVAYSA is 3,845 days. Of this time,
3,479 days occurred during the testing
phase of the regulatory review period,
while 366 days occurred during the
approval phase. These periods of time
were derived from the following dates:
1. The date an exemption under
section 505(i) of the Federal Food, Drug,
and Cosmetic Act (the FD&C Act) (21
U.S.C. 355(i)) became effective: July 1,
2004. FDA has verified the applicant’s
claim that July 1, 2004, is the date the
investigational new drug application
(IND) became effective.
2. The date the application was
initially submitted with respect to the
human drug product under section
505(b) of the FD&C Act: January 8, 2014.
FDA has verified the applicant’s claim
that the new drug application (NDA) for
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:51 Nov 27, 2017
Jkt 244001
SAVAYSA (NDA 206316) was initially
submitted on January 8, 2014.
3. The date the application was
approved: January 8, 2015. FDA has
verified the applicant’s claim that NDA
206316 was approved on January 8,
2015.
This determination of the regulatory
review period establishes the maximum
potential length of a patent extension.
However, the USPTO applies several
statutory limitations in its calculations
of the actual period for patent extension.
In its application for patent extension,
this applicant seeks 1,406 days of patent
term extension.
III. Petitions
Anyone with knowledge that any of
the dates as published are incorrect may
submit either electronic or written
comments and, under 21 CFR 60.24, ask
for a redetermination (see DATES).
Furthermore, as specified in § 60.30 (21
CFR 60.30), any interested person may
petition FDA for a determination
regarding whether the applicant for
extension acted with due diligence
during the regulatory review period. To
meet its burden, the petition must
comply with all the requirements of
§ 60.30, including but not limited to:
Must be timely (see DATES), must be
filed in accordance with § 10.20, must
contain sufficient facts to merit an FDA
investigation, and must certify that a
true and complete copy of the petition
has been served upon the patent
applicant. (See H. Rept. 857, part 1, 98th
Cong., 2d sess., pp. 41–42, 1984.)
Petitions should be in the format
specified in 21 CFR 10.30.
Submit petitions electronically to
https://www.regulations.gov at Docket
No. FDA–2013–S–0610. Submit written
petitions (two copies are required) to the
Dockets Management Staff (HFA–305),
Food and Drug Administration, 5630
Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD
20852.
Dated: November 22, 2017.
Leslie Kux,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2017–25703 Filed 11–27–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4164–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Food and Drug Administration
[Docket No. FDA–2016–E–0623]
Determination of Regulatory Review
Period for Purposes of Patent
Extension; ZERBAXA
AGENCY:
Food and Drug Administration,
HHS.
PO 00000
Frm 00046
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
ACTION:
56253
Notice.
The Food and Drug
Administration (FDA or the Agency) has
determined the regulatory review period
for ZERBAXA and is publishing this
notice of that determination as required
by law. FDA has made the
determination because of the
submission of an application to the
Director of the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office (USPTO), Department
of Commerce, for the extension of a
patent which claims that human drug
product.
DATES: Anyone with knowledge that any
of the dates as published (in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section) are
incorrect may submit either electronic
or written comments and ask for a
redetermination by January 29, 2018.
Furthermore, any interested person may
petition FDA for a determination
regarding whether the applicant for
extension acted with due diligence
during the regulatory review period by
May 29, 2018. See ‘‘Petitions’’ in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for
more information.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
as follows. Please note that late,
untimely filed comments will not be
considered. Electronic comments must
be submitted on or before January 29,
2018. The https://www.regulations.gov
electronic filing system will accept
comments until midnight Eastern Time
at the end of January 29, 2018.
Comments received by mail/hand
delivery/courier (for written/paper
submissions) will be considered timely
if they are postmarked or the delivery
service acceptance receipt is on or
before that date.
SUMMARY:
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.
E:\FR\FM\28NON1.SGM
28NON1
56254
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 227 / Tuesday, November 28, 2017 / Notices
ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES
• 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–
2016–E–0623 for ‘‘Determination of
Regulatory Review Period for Purposes
of Patent Extension; ZERBAXA.’’
Received comments, those filed in a
timely manner (see ADDRESSES), 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 § 10.20 (21
CFR 10.20) and other applicable
disclosure law. For more information
about FDA’s posting of comments to
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:51 Nov 27, 2017
Jkt 244001
public dockets, see 80 FR 56469,
September 18, 2015, or access the
information at: https://www.gpo.gov/
fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-09-18/pdf/201523389.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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Beverly Friedman, Office of Regulatory
Policy, Food and Drug Administration,
10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 51,
Rm. 6250, Silver Spring, MD 20993,
301–796–3600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Drug Price Competition and
Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984
(Pub. L. 98–417) and the Generic
Animal Drug and Patent Term
Restoration Act (Pub. L. 100–670)
generally provide that a patent may be
extended for a period of up to 5 years
so long as the patented item (human
drug product, animal drug product,
medical device, food additive, or color
additive) was subject to regulatory
review by FDA before the item was
marketed. Under these acts, a product’s
regulatory review period forms the basis
for determining the amount of extension
an applicant may receive.
A regulatory review period consists of
two periods of time: A testing phase and
an approval phase. For human drug
products, the testing phase begins when
the exemption to permit the clinical
investigations of the drug becomes
effective and runs until the approval
phase begins. The approval phase starts
with the initial submission of an
application to market the human drug
product and continues until FDA grants
permission to market the drug product.
Although only a portion of a regulatory
review period may count toward the
actual amount of extension that the
Director of USPTO may award (for
example, half the testing phase must be
subtracted as well as any time that may
have occurred before the patent was
issued), FDA’s determination of the
length of a regulatory review period for
a human drug product will include all
of the testing phase and approval phase
as specified in 35 U.S.C. 156(g)(1)(B).
FDA has approved for marketing the
human drug product ZERBAXA
(ceftolozane sulfate and tazobactam
PO 00000
Frm 00047
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
sodium). ZERBAXA is indicated for the
treatment of the following infections
caused by designated susceptible microorganisms:
• Complicated intra-abdominal
infections, used in combination with
metronidazole and
• Complicated urinary tract
infections, including pyelonephritis.
Subsequent to this approval, the
USPTO received a patent term
restoration application for ZERBAXA
(U.S. Patent No. 7,129,232) from
Astellas Pharma, Inc. and Wakunaga
Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., and the
USPTO requested FDA’s assistance in
determining this patent’s eligibility for
patent term restoration. In a letter dated
May 10, 2016, FDA advised the USPTO
that this human drug product had
undergone a regulatory review period
and that the approval of ZERBAXA
represented the first permitted
commercial marketing or use of the
product. Thereafter, the USPTO
requested that FDA determine the
product’s regulatory review period.
II. Determination of Regulatory Review
Period
FDA has determined that the
applicable regulatory review period for
ZERBAXA is 2,360 days. Of this time,
2,117 days occurred during the testing
phase of the regulatory review period,
while 243 days occurred during the
approval phase. These periods of time
were derived from the following dates:
1. The date an exemption under
section 505(i) of the Federal Food, Drug,
and Cosmetic Act (the FD&C Act) (21
U.S.C. 355(i)) became effective: July 5,
2008. FDA has verified the applicant’s
claim that the date the investigational
new drug application became effective
was on July 5, 2008.
2. The date the application was
initially submitted with respect to the
human drug product under section
505(b) of the FD&C Act: April 21, 2014.
FDA has verified the applicant’s claim
that the new drug application (NDA) for
ZERBAXA (NDA 206829) was initially
submitted on April 21, 2014.
3. The date the application was
approved: December 19, 2014. FDA has
verified the applicant’s claim that NDA
206829 was approved on December 19,
2014.
This determination of the regulatory
review period establishes the maximum
potential length of a patent extension.
However, the USPTO applies several
statutory limitations in its calculations
of the actual period for patent extension.
In its application for patent extension,
this applicant seeks 1,302 days of patent
term extension.
E:\FR\FM\28NON1.SGM
28NON1
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 227 / Tuesday, November 28, 2017 / Notices
III. Petitions
Anyone with knowledge that any of
the dates as published are incorrect may
submit either electronic or written
comments and, under 21 CFR 60.24, ask
for a redetermination (see DATES).
Furthermore, as specified in § 60.30 (21
CFR 60.30), any interested person may
petition FDA for a determination
regarding whether the applicant for
extension acted with due diligence
during the regulatory review period. To
meet its burden, the petition must
comply with all the requirements of
§ 60.30, including but not limited to:
Must be timely (see DATES), must be
filed in accordance with § 10.20, must
contain sufficient facts to merit an FDA
investigation, and must certify that a
true and complete copy of the petition
has been served upon the patent
applicant. (See H. Rept. 857, part 1, 98th
Cong., 2d sess., pp. 41–42, 1984.)
Petitions should be in the format
specified in 21 CFR 10.30.
Submit petitions electronically to
https://www.regulations.gov at Docket
No. FDA–2013–S–0610. Submit written
petitions (two copies are required) to the
Dockets Management Staff (HFA–305),
Food and Drug Administration, 5630
Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD
20852.
Dated: November 22, 2017.
Leslie Kux,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2017–25682 Filed 11–27–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4164–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
National Institutes of Health
ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse
and Alcoholism Amended; Notice of
Meeting
Notice is hereby given of a change in
the meeting of the National Institute on
Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Special
Emphasis Panel, December 11, 2017,
1:00 p.m. to December 11, 2017, 3:30
p.m., National Institute on Alcohol
Abuse and Alcoholism, 5635 Fishers
Lane, Bethesda, MD 20892 which was
published in the Federal Register on
November 17, 2017, 82 FR 54389.
This notice is amended to change the
meeting date from December 11, 2017 to
December 13, 2017. The meeting time
and location remains the same. The
meeting is closed to the public.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:51 Nov 27, 2017
Jkt 244001
Dated: November 21, 2017.
Melanie J. Pantoja,
Program Analyst, Office of Federal Advisory
Committee Policy.
[FR Doc. 2017–25631 Filed 11–27–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
Federal Emergency Management
Agency
[Docket ID FEMA–2017–0002; Internal
Agency Docket No. FEMA–B–1755]
Proposed Flood Hazard
Determinations
Federal Emergency
Management Agency, DHS.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
Comments are requested on
proposed flood hazard determinations,
which may include additions or
modifications of any Base Flood
Elevation (BFE), base flood depth,
Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA)
boundary or zone designation, or
regulatory floodway on the Flood
Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), and
where applicable, in the supporting
Flood Insurance Study (FIS) reports for
the communities listed in the table
below. The purpose of this notice is to
seek general information and comment
regarding the preliminary FIRM, and
where applicable, the FIS report that the
Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) has provided to the affected
communities. The FIRM and FIS report
are the basis of the floodplain
management measures that the
community is required either to adopt
or to show evidence of having in effect
in order to qualify or remain qualified
for participation in the National Flood
Insurance Program (NFIP). In addition,
the FIRM and FIS report, once effective,
will be used by insurance agents and
others to calculate appropriate flood
insurance premium rates for new
buildings and the contents of those
buildings.
SUMMARY:
Comments are to be submitted
on or before February 26, 2018.
ADDRESSES: The Preliminary FIRM, and
where applicable, the FIS report for
each community are available for
inspection at both the online location
https://www.fema.gov/
preliminaryfloodhazarddata and the
respective Community Map Repository
address listed in the tables below.
Additionally, the current effective FIRM
and FIS report for each community are
accessible online through the FEMA
DATES:
PO 00000
Frm 00048
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
56255
Map Service Center at https://
msc.fema.gov for comparison.
You may submit comments, identified
by Docket No. FEMA–B–1755, to Rick
Sacbibit, Chief, Engineering Services
Branch, Federal Insurance and
Mitigation Administration, FEMA, 400
C Street SW., Washington, DC 20472,
(202) 646–7659, or (email)
patrick.sacbibit@fema.dhs.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rick
Sacbibit, Chief, Engineering Services
Branch, Federal Insurance and
Mitigation Administration, FEMA, 400
C Street SW., Washington, DC 20472,
(202) 646–7659, or (email)
patrick.sacbibit@fema.dhs.gov; or visit
the FEMA Map Information eXchange
(FMIX) online at https://
www.floodmaps.fema.gov/fhm/fmx_
main.html.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FEMA
proposes to make flood hazard
determinations for each community
listed below, in accordance with section
110 of the Flood Disaster Protection Act
of 1973, 42 U.S.C. 4104, and 44 CFR
67.4(a).
These proposed flood hazard
determinations, together with the
floodplain management criteria required
by 44 CFR 60.3, are the minimum that
are required. They should not be
construed to mean that the community
must change any existing ordinances
that are more stringent in their
floodplain management requirements.
The community may at any time enact
stricter requirements of its own or
pursuant to policies established by other
Federal, State, or regional entities.
These flood hazard determinations are
used to meet the floodplain
management requirements of the NFIP
and also are used to calculate the
appropriate flood insurance premium
rates for new buildings built after the
FIRM and FIS report become effective.
The communities affected by the
flood hazard determinations are
provided in the tables below. Any
request for reconsideration of the
revised flood hazard information shown
on the Preliminary FIRM and FIS report
that satisfies the data requirements
outlined in 44 CFR 67.6(b) is considered
an appeal. Comments unrelated to the
flood hazard determinations also will be
considered before the FIRM and FIS
report become effective.
Use of a Scientific Resolution Panel
(SRP) is available to communities in
support of the appeal resolution
process. SRPs are independent panels of
experts in hydrology, hydraulics, and
other pertinent sciences established to
review conflicting scientific and
technical data and provide
E:\FR\FM\28NON1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 227 (Tuesday, November 28, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56253-56255]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-25682]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Food and Drug Administration
[Docket No. FDA-2016-E-0623]
Determination of Regulatory Review Period for Purposes of Patent
Extension; ZERBAXA
AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or the Agency) has
determined the regulatory review period for ZERBAXA and is publishing
this notice of that determination as required by law. FDA has made the
determination because of the submission of an application to the
Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Department of
Commerce, for the extension of a patent which claims that human drug
product.
DATES: Anyone with knowledge that any of the dates as published (in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section) are incorrect may submit either
electronic or written comments and ask for a redetermination by January
29, 2018. Furthermore, any interested person may petition FDA for a
determination regarding whether the applicant for extension acted with
due diligence during the regulatory review period by May 29, 2018. See
``Petitions'' in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for more
information.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments as follows. Please note that late,
untimely filed comments will not be considered. Electronic comments
must be submitted on or before January 29, 2018. The https://www.regulations.gov electronic filing system will accept comments until
midnight Eastern Time at the end of January 29, 2018. Comments received
by mail/hand delivery/courier (for written/paper submissions) will be
considered timely if they are postmarked or the delivery service
acceptance receipt is on or before that date.
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.
[[Page 56254]]
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-2016-E-0623 for ``Determination of Regulatory Review Period for
Purposes of Patent Extension; ZERBAXA.'' Received comments, those filed
in a timely manner (see ADDRESSES), 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 Sec. 10.20 (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.gpo.gov/fdsys/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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Beverly Friedman, Office of Regulatory
Policy, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg.
51, Rm. 6250, Silver Spring, MD 20993, 301-796-3600.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984
(Pub. L. 98-417) and the Generic Animal Drug and Patent Term
Restoration Act (Pub. L. 100-670) generally provide that a patent may
be extended for a period of up to 5 years so long as the patented item
(human drug product, animal drug product, medical device, food
additive, or color additive) was subject to regulatory review by FDA
before the item was marketed. Under these acts, a product's regulatory
review period forms the basis for determining the amount of extension
an applicant may receive.
A regulatory review period consists of two periods of time: A
testing phase and an approval phase. For human drug products, the
testing phase begins when the exemption to permit the clinical
investigations of the drug becomes effective and runs until the
approval phase begins. The approval phase starts with the initial
submission of an application to market the human drug product and
continues until FDA grants permission to market the drug product.
Although only a portion of a regulatory review period may count toward
the actual amount of extension that the Director of USPTO may award
(for example, half the testing phase must be subtracted as well as any
time that may have occurred before the patent was issued), FDA's
determination of the length of a regulatory review period for a human
drug product will include all of the testing phase and approval phase
as specified in 35 U.S.C. 156(g)(1)(B).
FDA has approved for marketing the human drug product ZERBAXA
(ceftolozane sulfate and tazobactam sodium). ZERBAXA is indicated for
the treatment of the following infections caused by designated
susceptible micro-organisms:
Complicated intra-abdominal infections, used in
combination with metronidazole and
Complicated urinary tract infections, including
pyelonephritis.
Subsequent to this approval, the USPTO received a patent term
restoration application for ZERBAXA (U.S. Patent No. 7,129,232) from
Astellas Pharma, Inc. and Wakunaga Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., and the
USPTO requested FDA's assistance in determining this patent's
eligibility for patent term restoration. In a letter dated May 10,
2016, FDA advised the USPTO that this human drug product had undergone
a regulatory review period and that the approval of ZERBAXA represented
the first permitted commercial marketing or use of the product.
Thereafter, the USPTO requested that FDA determine the product's
regulatory review period.
II. Determination of Regulatory Review Period
FDA has determined that the applicable regulatory review period for
ZERBAXA is 2,360 days. Of this time, 2,117 days occurred during the
testing phase of the regulatory review period, while 243 days occurred
during the approval phase. These periods of time were derived from the
following dates:
1. The date an exemption under section 505(i) of the Federal Food,
Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the FD&C Act) (21 U.S.C. 355(i)) became
effective: July 5, 2008. FDA has verified the applicant's claim that
the date the investigational new drug application became effective was
on July 5, 2008.
2. The date the application was initially submitted with respect to
the human drug product under section 505(b) of the FD&C Act: April 21,
2014. FDA has verified the applicant's claim that the new drug
application (NDA) for ZERBAXA (NDA 206829) was initially submitted on
April 21, 2014.
3. The date the application was approved: December 19, 2014. FDA
has verified the applicant's claim that NDA 206829 was approved on
December 19, 2014.
This determination of the regulatory review period establishes the
maximum potential length of a patent extension. However, the USPTO
applies several statutory limitations in its calculations of the actual
period for patent extension. In its application for patent extension,
this applicant seeks 1,302 days of patent term extension.
[[Page 56255]]
III. Petitions
Anyone with knowledge that any of the dates as published are
incorrect may submit either electronic or written comments and, under
21 CFR 60.24, ask for a redetermination (see DATES). Furthermore, as
specified in Sec. 60.30 (21 CFR 60.30), any interested person may
petition FDA for a determination regarding whether the applicant for
extension acted with due diligence during the regulatory review period.
To meet its burden, the petition must comply with all the requirements
of Sec. 60.30, including but not limited to: Must be timely (see
DATES), must be filed in accordance with Sec. 10.20, must contain
sufficient facts to merit an FDA investigation, and must certify that a
true and complete copy of the petition has been served upon the patent
applicant. (See H. Rept. 857, part 1, 98th Cong., 2d sess., pp. 41-42,
1984.) Petitions should be in the format specified in 21 CFR 10.30.
Submit petitions electronically to https://www.regulations.gov at
Docket No. FDA-2013-S-0610. Submit written petitions (two copies are
required) to the Dockets Management Staff (HFA-305), Food and Drug
Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
Dated: November 22, 2017.
Leslie Kux,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2017-25682 Filed 11-27-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4164-01-P