1. A coordination group shall be set up for the examination of any question relating to marketing authorisation of a medicinal product in two or more Member States in accordance with the procedures laid down in this Chapter. The Agency shall provide the secretariat of this coordination group.
2. The coordination group shall be composed of one representative per Member State appointed for a renewable period of three years. Members of the coordination group may arrange to be accompanied by experts.
3. The coordination group shall draw up its own Rules of Procedure, which shall enter into force after a favourable opinion has been given by the Commission. These Rules of Procedure shall be made public.
1. With a view to the granting of a marketing authorisation for a medicinal product in more than one Member State, an applicant shall submit an application based on an identical dossier in these Member States. The dossier shall contain the information and documents referred to in Articles 8, 10, 10a, 10b, 10c and 11. The documents submitted shall include a list of Member States concerned by the application.
The applicant shall request one Member State to act as ‘ reference Member State ’ and to prepare an assessment report on the medicinal product in accordance with paragraphs 2 or 3.
2. Where the medicinal product has already received a marketing authorisation at the time of application, the concerned Member States shall recognise the marketing authorisation granted by the reference Member State. To this end, the marketing authorisation holder shall request the reference Member State either to prepare an assessment report on the medicinal product or, if necessary, to update any existing assessment report. The reference Member State shall prepare or update the assessment report within 90 days of receipt of a valid application. The assessment report together with the approved summary of product characteristics, labelling and package leaflet shall be sent to the concerned Member States and to the applicant.
3. In cases where the medicinal product has not received a marketing authorisation at the time of application, the applicant shall request the reference Member State to prepare a draft assessment report, a draft summary of product characteristics and a draft of the labelling and package leaflet. The reference Member State shall prepare these draft documents within 120 days after receipt of a valid application and shall send them to the concerned Member States and to the applicant.
4. Within 90 days of receipt of the documents referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3, the Member States concerned shall approve the assessment report, the summary of product characteristics and the labelling and package leaflet and shall inform the reference Member State accordingly. The reference Member State shall record the agreement of all parties, close the procedure and inform the applicant accordingly.
5. Each Member State in which an application has been submitted in accordance with paragraph 1 shall adopt a decision in conformity with the approved assessment report, the summary of product characteristics and the labelling and package leaflet as approved, within 30 days after acknowledgement of the agreement.
1. If, within the period laid down in Article 28(4), a Member State cannot approve the assessment report, the summary of product characteristics, the labelling and the package leaflet on the grounds of potential serious risk to public health, it shall give a detailed exposition of the reasons for its position to the reference Member State, to the other Member States concerned and to the applicant. The points of disagreement shall be forthwith referred to the coordination group.
2. Guidelines to be adopted by the Commission shall define a potential serious risk to public health.
3. Within the coordination group, all Member States referred to in paragraph 1 shall use their best endeavours to reach agreement on the action to be taken. They shall allow the applicant the opportunity to make his point of view known orally or in writing. If, within 60 days of the communication of the points of disagreement, the Member States reach an agreement, the reference Member State shall record the agreement, close the procedure and inform the applicant accordingly. Article 28(5) shall apply.
4. If the Member States fail to reach an agreement within the 60-day period laid down in paragraph 3, the Agency shall be immediately informed, with a view to the application of the procedure under Articles 32, 33 and 34. The Agency shall be provided with a detailed statement of the matters on which the Member States have been unable to reach agreement and the reasons for their disagreement. A copy shall be forwarded to the applicant.
5. As soon as the applicant is informed that the matter has been referred to the Agency, he shall forthwith forward to the Agency a copy of the information and documents referred to in the first subparagraph of Article 28(1).
6. In the circumstances referred to in paragraph 4, Member States that have approved the assessment report, the draft summary of product characteristics and the labelling and package leaflet of the reference Member State may, at the request of the applicant, authorise the medicinal product without waiting for the outcome of the procedure laid down in Article 32. In that event, the authorisation granted shall be without prejudice to the outcome of that procedure.
1. If two or more applications submitted in accordance with Articles 8, 10, 10a, 10b, 10c and 11 have been made for marketing authorisation for a particular medicinal product, and if Member States have adopted divergent decisions concerning the authorisation of the medicinal product or its suspension or revocation, a Member State, the Commission or the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder may refer the matter to the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use, hereinafter referred to as ‘ the Committee ’ , for the application of the procedure laid down in Articles 32, 33 and 34.
2. In order to promote harmonisation of authorisations for medicinal products authorised in the Community, Member States shall, each year, forward to the coordination group a list of medicinal products for which a harmonised summary of product characteristics should be drawn up.
The coordination group shall lay down a list taking into account the proposals from all Member States and shall forward this list to the Commission.
The Commission or a Member State, in agreement with the Agency and taking into account the views of interested parties, may refer these products to the Committee in accordance with paragraph 1.
1. The Member States or the Commission or the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder shall, in specific cases where the interests of the Community are involved, refer the matter to the Committee for application of the procedure laid down in Articles 32, 33 and 34 before any decision is reached on a request for a marketing authorisation or on the suspension or revocation of an authorisation, or on any other variation to the terms of a marketing authorisation which appears necessary, in particular to take account of the information collected in accordance with Title IX.
The Member State concerned or the Commission shall clearly identify the question which is referred to the Committee for consideration and shall inform the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder.
The Member States and the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder shall supply the Committee with all available information relating to the matter in question.
2. Where the referral to the Committee concerns a range of medicinal products or a therapeutic class, the Agency may limit the procedure to certain specific parts of the authorisation.
In that event, Article 35 shall apply to those medicinal products only if they were covered by the authorisation procedures referred to in this Chapter.
1. When reference is made to the procedure laid down in this Article, the Committee shall consider the matter concerned and shall issue a reasoned opinion within 60 days of the date on which the matter was referred to it.
However, in cases submitted to the Committee in accordance with Articles 30 and 31, this period may be extended by the Committee for a further period of up to 90 days, taking into account the views of the applicants or the marketing authorisation holders concerned.
In an emergency, and on a proposal from its Chairman, the Committee may agree to a shorter deadline.
2. In order to consider the matter, the Committee shall appoint one of its members to act as rapporteur. The Committee may also appoint individual experts to advise it on specific questions. When appointing experts, the Committee shall define their tasks and specify the time-limit for the completion of these tasks.
3. Before issuing its opinion, the Committee shall provide the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder with an opportunity to present written or oral explanations within a time limit which it shall specify.
The opinion of the Committee shall be accompanied by a draft summary of product characteristics for the product and a draft text of the labelling and package leaflet.
If necessary, the Committee may call upon any other person to provide information relating to the matter before it.
The Committee may suspend the time-limits referred to in paragraph 1 in order to allow the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder to prepare explanations.
4. The Agency shall forthwith inform the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder where the opinion of the Committee is that:
(a) the application does not satisfy the criteria for authorisation; or
(b) the summary of the product characteristics proposed by the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder in accordance with Article 11 should be amended; or
(c) the authorisation should be granted subject to certain conditions, in view of conditions considered essential for the safe and effective use of the medicinal product including pharmacovigilance; or
(d) a marketing authorisation should be suspended, varied or revoked.
Within 15 days after receipt of the opinion, the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder may notify the Agency in writing of his intention to request a re-examination of the opinion. In that case, he shall forward to the Agency the detailed grounds for the request within 60 days after receipt of the opinion.
Within 60 days following receipt of the grounds for the request, the Committee shall re-examine its opinion in accordance with the fourth subparagraph of Article 62(1) of Regulation (EC) No 726/2004. The reasons for the conclusion reached shall be annexed to the assessment report referred to in paragraph 5 of this Article.
5. Within 15 days after its adoption, the Agency shall forward the final opinion of the Committee to the Member States, to the Commission and to the applicant or the marketing authorisation holder, together with a report describing the assessment of the medicinal product and stating the reasons for its conclusions.
In the event of an opinion in favour of granting or maintaining an authorisation to place the medicinal product concerned on the market, the following documents shall be annexed to the opinion:
(a) a draft summary of the product characteristics, as referred to in Article 11;
(b) any conditions affecting the authorisation within the meaning of paragraph 4(c);
(c) details of any recommended conditions or restrictions with regard to the safe and effective use of the medicinal product;
(d) the proposed text of the labelling and leaflet.]
Within [F115 days] of the receipt of the opinion, the Commission shall prepare a draft of the decision to be taken in respect of the application, taking into account Community law.
In the event of a draft decision which envisages the granting of marketing authorization, the documents referred to in [F1Article 32(5), second subparagraph] shall be annexed.
Where, exceptionally, the draft decision is not in accordance with the opinion of the Agency, the Commission shall also annex a detailed explanation of the reasons for the differences.
The draft decision shall be forwarded to the Member States and the applicant[F2or the marketing authorisation holder].
Textual Amendments
1. The Commission shall take a final decision in accordance with, and within 15 days after the end of, the procedure referred to in Article 121(3).
2. The rules of procedure of the Standing Committee established by Article 121(1) shall be adjusted to take account of the tasks incumbent upon it under this Chapter.
Those adjustments shall entail the following provisions:
(a) except in cases referred to in the third paragraph of Article 33, the opinion of the Standing Committee shall be given in writing;
(b) Member States shall have 22 days to forward their written observations on the draft decision to the Commission. However, if a decision has to be taken urgently, a shorter time-limit may be set by the Chairman according to the degree of urgency involved. This time-limit shall not, otherwise than in exceptional circumstances, be shorter than 5 days;
(c) Member States shall have the option of submitting a written request that the draft Decision be discussed in a plenary meeting of the Standing Committee.
Where, in the opinion of the Commission, the written observations of a Member State raise important new questions of a scientific or technical nature which have not been addressed in the opinion delivered by the Agency, the Chairman shall suspend the procedure and refer the application back to the Agency for further consideration.
The provisions necessary for the implementation of this paragraph shall be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 121(2).
3. The decision as referred to in paragraph 1 shall be addressed to all Member States and reported for information to the marketing authorisation holder or applicant. The concerned Member States and the reference Member State shall either grant or revoke the marketing authorisation, or vary its terms as necessary to comply with the decision within 30 days following its notification, and they shall refer to it. They shall inform the Commission and the Agency accordingly.]
1.Any application by the marketing authorization holder to vary a marketing authorization which has been granted in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter shall be submitted to all the Member States which have previously authorized the medicinal product concerned.
The Commission shall, in consultation with the Agency, adopt appropriate arrangements for the examination of variations to the terms of a marketing authorization.
[ F3. . . . .]
[F4These arrangements shall be adopted by the Commission in the form of an implementing regulation. That measure, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Directive by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 121(2a).]
2.In case of arbitration submitted to the Commission, the procedure laid down in Articles 32, 33 and 34 shall apply by analogy to variations made to marketing authorizations.
Textual Amendments
1.Where a Member State considers that the variation of a marketing authorization which has been granted in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter or its suspension or withdrawal is necessary for the protection of public health, the Member State concerned shall forthwith refer the matter to the Agency for the application of the procedures laid down in Articles 32, 33 and 34.
2.Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 31, in exceptional cases, where urgent action is essential to protect public health, until a definitive decision is adopted a Member State may suspend the marketing and the use of the medicinal product concerned on its territory. It shall inform the Commission and the other Member States no later than the following working day of the reasons for its action.
Articles 35 and 36 shall apply by analogy to medicinal products authorized by Member States following an opinion of the Committee given in accordance with Article 4 of Directive 87/22/EEC before 1 January 1995.
1.The Agency shall publish an annual report on the operation of the procedures laid down in this Chapter and shall forward that report to the European Parliament and the Council for information.
[F12. At least every ten years the Commission shall publish a report on the experience acquired on the basis of the procedures described in this Chapter and shall propose any amendments which may be necessary to improve those procedures. The Commission shall submit this report to the European Parliament and to the Council.]
Article 29(4), (5) and (6) and Articles 30 to 34 shall not apply to the homeopathic medicinal products referred to in Article 14.
Articles 28 to 34 shall not apply to the homeopathic medicinal products referred to in Article 16(2).]