FDA News & Notes - Week of May 2, 2011

SILVER SPRING, Md., May 2, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --Science, public health, and regulatory highlights for this week from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Information in this document is designed for credentialed journalists. Release dates and times for items are current as of May 2, 2011.

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FDA News & Notes does not contain any regulatory or enforcement actions due to legal limitations.

Meetings, Workshops and Congressional Testimony:

Monday, 5/2 – Joint Meeting of the Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee and Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee. Updates on the safety of ultrasound contrast agents. 8 a.m., 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Bldg. 31, Room 1503, Silver Spring, Md.

Press Office Contact: Amanda Sena, 301-796-0393, [email protected]

Tuesday, 5/3 – House Committee on Veterans' Affairs holds hearing titled Sacred Obligation: Restoring Veteran Trust and Patient Safety. Anthony Watson, director, division of anesthesiology, general hospital, infection control, and dental devices in the Center for Devices and Radiological Health, discusses reprocessing of reusable medical devices. 10:30 a.m., Room 334, Cannon House Office Building, Washington, D.C.

Press Office Contact: Karen Riley, 301-796-4674, [email protected]

Thursday, 5/5 – Risk Communication Advisory Committee Meeting. Discussion of developments in the FDA's ongoing communications programs and on the dissemination, tracking, and reaching less accessible target audiences. 8 a.m., 5630 Fishers Lane, Conference Room 1066, Rockville, Md.

Press Office Contact: Karen Riley, 301-796-4674, [email protected]

Science:

Brian Garra, an FDA physician and researcher, has won a $100,000 Grand Challenges Explorations grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The award is to devise a low-cost way to bring ultrasound diagnoses to pregnant women in rural areas with high maternal/neonatal mortality. Garra works at the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health.

Press Office Contact: Karen Riley, 301-796-4674, [email protected]

Policy:

The FDA is inviting public comment on how to improve existing regulations as part of a government-wide effort announced by President Obama. In her post on the FDA's Transparency Blog, Leslie Kux, the FDA's assistant commissioner for policy, says the review will "really help us focus on how we can improve our regulations."

Press Office Contact: Jeffrey Ventura, 301-796-2807, [email protected]

FDA Office of Public Affairs Contact Information:

Call or email FDA Office of Public Affairs, 301-796-4540, [email protected]

List of FDA press officers and beats

More Resources:

FDA News and Events

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Consumer Health Information

SOURCE U.S. Food and Drug Administration