BRIEF-FDA postpones foreign inspections through April

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is postponing all but the most mission-critical inspections outside of the USA through April, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Inspections that are seen as mission-critical will be considered on a case-by-case basis, with the FDA accepting that its stance will impact its responsibilities, including product application reviews.

A statement from FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn reads: “We will be vigilant and monitor the situation very closely and will try to mitigate potential impacts from this outbreak in lockstep with the whole of the federal government. We stand ready to resume foreign inspections as soon as feasible.”

The agency last month stopped conducting inspections in China.