Non-binding Guidance: Recent Developments in FDA Inspection Policy and Implications for Drug and Device Manufacturers

This installation of Ropes & Gray’s podcast series Non-binding Guidance focuses on recent developments in FDA inspection policy, including implications of the pandemic-related slowdown on product quality and approval delays as well as progress FDA has been making in clearing the inspection backlog. In March 2020, many routine inspections, such as foreign pre-approval and for-cause inspection assignments not deemed “mission-critical,” were temporarily postponed, but FDA has recently restarted some inspections. In this episode, Ropes & Gray life sciences regulatory & compliance practice group leader, Greg Levine, and Ropes & Gray counsel and former FDA Office of Chief Counsel attorney, Beth Weinman, discuss the significance of these developments and what FDA-regulated entities can expect when thinking about and preparing for FDA inspections in 2022.