“Practice of Medicine” or FDA Authority to Regulate
The Food and Drug Administration and the Authority to Regulate
Regenerative Sciences, LLC vigorously defended its position that FDA could not regulate the practice of medicine in its Regenexx™ treatment or Regenexx-C™ cultured treatment which uses Mesenchymal adult stem cells (MSCs) that originate primarily from bone marrow. The company promotes the Regenexx™ treatment as a “non-surgical” treatment option for joint or bone pain in the hip, knee, shoulder, back or ankle as well as non-union fractures. The dispute with FDA has been ongoing since at least 2008 when FDA sent correspondence to Regenerative Sciences depicting the cell treatment as a drug or biologic. FDA conducted an inspection and found violations of current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMPs). The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the District Court and the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) argument that Regenerative Sciences “Cultured Regenexx Procedure” was a biological drug subject to FDA approval through the biologics licensing application (BLA) process. The court of appeals upheld the permanent injunction against the use of the biological drug without FDA approval. The issue focused on the practice of medicine versus the regulation by the United States Food and Drug Administration. This distinction has far reaching ramifications.
Issue the Court of Appeals Addressed
In the civil enforcement action, the court of appeals had to decide “whether the appellants—three individuals and a related corporate entity—violated federal laws regulating the manufacture and labeling of drugs and biological products by producing, as part of their medical practice, a substance consisting of a mixture of a patient’s stem cells and the antibiotic doxycycline.” The court of appeals determined that FDA had the authority to regulate the product and affirmed the district court’s judgment and the permanent injunction it entered against appellants.
What Regenerative Sciences, LLC Argued
Regenerative Sciences, LLC (Regenerative Sciences) alleged several arguments that their product did not fall within FDA regulatory authority; however, the court rejected all of the arguments. For example, Regenerative argued that the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) did not apply because the product was a procedure overseen by state “practice of medicine”. Another argument advanced by Regenerative Sciences was that the product was exempt from FDA approval because it was a compounded product and further it was a minimally manipulated product. As mentioned, the court of appeals rejected all of the arguments advanced by Regenerative Sciences.
Looking Ahead
This was a long awaited decision. The future is uncertain in terms of how a court will rule about novel therapies such as the issue in this case. However, no doubt as more technological advances occur, FDA will again be challenged as to the agency’s authority to regulate such products and or procedures.The link to the full case is as follows:
Forti Publications 