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  1. Confidentiality Commitments

FDA – The Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care, Confidentiality Commitment

STATEMENT OF AUTHORITY
AND
CONFIDENTIALITY COMMITMENT FROM
THE UNITED STATES FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION
NOT TO PUBLICLY DISCLOSE NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION SHARED
BY
THE AUSTRIAN FEDERAL OFFICE FOR SAFETY IN HEALTH CARE

The Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care is authorized to disclose non-public information to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding Austrian Federal Office in Health Care-regulated drugs, including pre- and post-market activities, as appropriate, as part of cooperative law enforcement or cooperative regulatory activities.

FDA is authorized under 21 C.F.R. § 20.891 to disclose non-public information to the Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care regarding FDA-regulated drugs, including pre- and post-market activities, as appropriate, as part of cooperative law enforcement or cooperative regulatory activities. FDA is further authorized under section 708(c) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act2 to share with a foreign government, as it deems appropriate and under limited circumstances, certain types of trade secret information.

The Commissioner of Food and Drugs has certified the Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care as having the authority and demonstrated ability to protect trade secret information from disclosure. FDA therefore may provide the Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care with certain types of trade secret information at FDA’s discretion and upon request by the Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care based on the following certifications.

FDA understands that some of the information it receives from the Austrian Federal Office for Safety in Health Care may include non-public information exempt from public disclosure, such as commercially confidential information; trade secret information; personal privacy information; law enforcement information; designated national security information; or internal, pre-decisional information. FDA understands that this non-public information is shared in confidence and that it is critical that FDA maintains the confidentiality of exchanged non-public information. Public disclosure of exchanged non-public information by FDA could seriously jeopardize any further scientific and regulatory interactions between the Austrian Federal Office in Health Care and FDA. The Austrian Federal Office in Health Care will advise FDA of the non-public status of the information at the time that the information is shared.

Therefore, FDA certifies that it:

  1. has the authority to protect from public disclosure such non-public information provided to it in confidence3 ;
     
  2. will not publicly disclose such non-public information without the written authorization of the owner of the information, the written authorization from the individual who is the subject of the personal privacy information, or a written statement from the Austrian Federal Office in Health Care providing that the information no longer has non-public status;
     
  3. will promptly inform the Austrian Federal Office in Health Care of any effort made by judicial or legislative mandate to obtain non-public information exchanged under the terms of this Statement of Authority and Confidentiality Commitment. If such judicial or legislative mandate orders disclosure of such non-public information, FDA will take all appropriate measures in an effort to ensure that the information will be disclosed in a manner that protects the information from public disclosure; and
     
  4. will promptly inform the Austrian Federal Office in Health Care of any changes to the United States of America’s laws, or to any relevant policies or procedures, that would affect its ability to honor the commitments in this document.

 

This text is not intended to create rights and obligations under international or other law.

Signed on behalf of the United States Food and Drug Administration

______________/S/_______________
01/02/2018

Dara A. Corrigan
Acting Deputy Commissioner
for Global Regulatory Operations and Policy

U.S. Food & Drug Administration
10903 New Hampshire Avenue,
Silver Spring, Maryland 20993
United States

Date

1 United States Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21, section 20.89.

2 United States Code, Title 21, section 379(c).

3 FDA has the authority to protect non-public information under several statutory provisions, including 5 U.S.C. § 552a; 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(1) – (9); 18 U.S.C. § 1905; and 21 U.S.C. § 331(j).

 

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