
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 248 (Friday, December 28, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67298-67299]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-28235]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2012-N-0197]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Medical Devices; Shortages Data Collection System

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or Agency) is announcing 
an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain 
information by the Agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(PRA), Federal Agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal 
Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including 
each proposed reinstatement of an existing collection of information, 
and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice. This 
notice solicits comments on the Shortages Data Collection System for 
certain medical devices.

DATES: Submit either electronic or written comments on the collection 
of information by February 26, 2019.

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 February 26, 2019. The https://www.regulations.gov electronic filing system will accept comments until 
11:59 p.m. Eastern Time at the end of February 26, 2019. 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.
     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-2012-N-0197 for ``Shortages Data Collection System.'' 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

[[Page 67299]]

as ``confidential'' will not be disclosed except in accordance with 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: Amber Sanford, Office of Operations, 
Food and Drug Administration, Three White Flint North, 10A-12M, 11601 
Landsdown St., North Bethesda, MD 20852, (301) 796-8867, 
PRAStaff@fda.hhs.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), Federal 
Agencies must obtain approval from the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for each collection of information they conduct or sponsor. 
``Collection of information'' is defined in 44 U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 
1320.3(c) and includes Agency requests or requirements that members of 
the public submit reports, keep records, or provide information to a 
third party. Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)) 
requires Federal Agencies to provide a 60-day notice in the Federal 
Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including 
each proposed reinstatement of an existing collection of information, 
before submitting the collection to OMB for approval. To comply with 
this requirement, FDA is publishing notice of the proposed collection 
of information set forth in this document.
    With respect to the following collection of information, FDA 
invites comments on these topics: (1) Whether the proposed collection 
of information is necessary for the proper performance of FDA's 
functions, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of FDA's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including through the use of automated collection techniques, when 
appropriate, and other forms of information technology.
Shortages Data Collection System
OMB Control Number 0910-0491--Reinstatement
    Under section 1003(d)(2) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic 
Act (the FD&C Act) (21 U.S.C. 393(d)(2)), the Commissioner of Food and 
Drugs is authorized to implement general powers (including conducting 
research) to carry out effectively the mission of FDA.
    After the events of September 11, 2001, and as part of broader 
counterterrorism and emergency preparedness activities, FDA's Center 
for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) began developing operational 
plans and interventions that would enable CDRH to anticipate and 
respond to medical device shortages that might arise in the context of 
federally declared disasters/emergencies or regulatory actions. In 
particular, CDRH identified the need to acquire and maintain detailed 
data on domestic inventory, manufacturing capabilities, distribution 
plans, and raw material constraints for medical devices that would be 
in high demand, and/or would be vulnerable to shortages in specific 
disaster/emergency situations or following specific regulatory actions. 
Such data could support prospective risk assessment, help inform risk 
mitigation strategies, support real-time decision making by the 
Department of Health and Human Services during actual emergencies or 
emergency preparedness exercises, and mitigate or prevent harm to the 
public health.
    The data collection process will consist of an initial telephone 
call to firms who have been identified as producing an essential 
medical device. In this initial call, the intent and goals of the data 
collection effort will be described, and the specific data request 
made. Data will be collected, using least burdensome methods, in a 
structured manner to answer specific questions. After the initial 
outreach, we will request updates to the information on a quarterly 
basis to keep the data current and accurate. Additional followup 
correspondence may occasionally be needed to verify/validate data, 
confirm receipt of followup correspondence(s), and/or request 
additional details to further inform FDA's public health response.
    FDA estimates the burden of this collection of information as 
follows:

                                 Table 1--Estimated Annual Reporting Burden \1\
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                                                   Number of
           Activity                Number of     responses per   Total annual    Average burden     Total hours
                                  respondents     respondent       responses      per response
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Shortages Data Collection.....             500               4           2,000  0.5 (30 minutes)           1,000
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\1\ There are no capital costs or operating and maintenance costs associated with this collection of
  information.

    FDA based the burden estimates in table 1 on past experience with 
direct contact with the medical device manufacturers and anticipated 
changes in the medical device manufacturing patterns for the specific 
devices being monitored. FDA estimates that approximately 500 
manufacturers would be contacted by telephone and/or electronic mail 4 
times per year either to obtain primary data or to verify/validate 
data. Because the requested data represent data elements that are 
monitored or tracked by manufacturers as part of routine inventory 
management activities, it is anticipated that for most manufacturers, 
the estimated time required of manufacturers to complete the data 
request will not exceed 30 minutes per request cycle.
    We adjusted our estimated burden for the information collection to 
reflect an increase in the number of submissions over the last few 
years. This adjustment results in an increase of 750 hours to the total 
burden estimate.

    Dated: December 21, 2018.
Leslie Kux,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2018-28235 Filed 12-27-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4164-01-P


