Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 1996 / Notices 26913

Dated: May 16, 1996.

Stuart L. Nightingale,

Associate Commissioner for Health Affairs.

[FR Doc. 96–13308 Filed 5–28–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4160–01–F

[Docket No. 96E–0046]

Determination of Regulatory Review

Period for Purposes of Patent

Extension; ZYRTECTM

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration,

HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Food and Drug

Administration (FDA) has determined

the regulatory review period for

ZYRTECTM 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 Commissioner of

Patents and Trademarks, Department of

Commerce, for the extension of a patent

which claims that human drug product.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and

petitions should be directed to the

Dockets Management Branch (HFA–

305), Food and Drug Administration,

12420 Parklawn Dr., rm. 1–23,

Rockville, MD 20857.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Brian J. Malkin, Office of Health Affairs

(HFY–20), Food and Drug

Administration, 5600 Fishers Lane,

Rockville, MD 20857, 301–443–1382.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 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

Commissioner of Patents and

Trademarks 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 recently approved for marketing

the human drug product ZYRTECTM

(cetirizine hydrochloride). ZYRTECTM is

indicated for the relief of symptoms

associated with seasonal allergic rhinitis

due to allergens such as ragweed, grass

and tree pollens in adults and children

12 years and older. Subsequent to this

approval, the Patent and Trademark

Office received a patent term restoration

application for ZYRTECTM (U.S. Patent

No. 4,525,358) from UCB PHARMA,

INC., and the Patent and Trademark

Office requested FDA’s assistance in

determining this patent’s eligibility for

patent term restoration. In a letter dated

March 1, 1996, FDA advised the Patent

and Trademark Office that this human

drug product had undergone a

regulatory review period and that the

approval of ZYRTECTM represented the

first permitted commercial marketing or

use of the product. Shortly thereafter,

the Patent and Trademark Office

requested that FDA determine the

product’s regulatory review period.

FDA has determined that the

applicable regulatory review period for

ZYRTECTM is 4,210 days. Of this time,

1,493 days occurred during the testing

phase of the regulatory review period,

while 2,717 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 (21 U.S.C. 355(i))

became effective: May 31, 1984. FDA

has verified the applicant’s claim that

the date the investigational new drug

application became effective was on

May 31, 1984.

2. The date the application was

initially submitted with respect to the

human drug product under section

505(b) of the Federal Food, Drug, and

Cosmetic Act: July 1, 1988. FDA has

verified the applicant’s claim that the

new drug application (NDA) for

ZYRTECTM (NDA 19–835) was initially

submitted on July 1, 1988.

3. The date the application was

approved: December 8, 1995. FDA has

verified the applicant’s claim that NDA

19–835 was approved on December 8,

1995.

This determination of the regulatory

review period establishes the maximum

potential length of a patent extension.

However, the U.S. Patent and

Trademark Office applies several

statutory limitations in its calculations

of the actual period for patent extension.

In its application for patent extension,

this applicant seeks 1,826 days of patent

term extension..

Anyone with knowledge that any of

the dates as published is incorrect may,

on or before July 29, 1996, submit to the

Dockets Management Branch (address

above) written comments and ask for a

redetermination. Furthermore, any

interested person may petition FDA, on

or before November 25, 1996, 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 contain sufficient facts to merit an

FDA investigation. (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.

Comments and petitions should be

submitted to the Dockets Management

Branch (address above) in three copies

(except that individuals may submit

single copies) and identified with the

docket number found in brackets in the

heading of this document. Comments

and petitions may be seen in the

Dockets Management Branch between 9

a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through

Friday.

Dated: May 16, 1996.

Stuart L. Nightingale,

Associate Commissioner for Health Affairs.

[FR Doc. 96–13310 Filed 5–28–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4160–01–F

[Docket No. 96E–0044]

Determination of Regulatory Review

Period for Purposes of Patent

Extension; AMARYL

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration,

HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Food and Drug

Administration (FDA) has determined

the regulatory review period for

AMARYL 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 Commissioner of

Patents and Trademarks, Department of

Commerce, for the extension of a patent

which claims human drug product.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and

petitions should be directed to the

Dockets Management Branch (HFA–

305), Food and Drug Administration,