FDA Publishes Agenda for Roundtable on Blood Manufacturing and Supply Chain

The Food and Drug Administration has published the agenda for an upcoming virtual roundtable focused on supply chain challenges and potential solutions to prevent shortages of supplies and equipment used in blood manufacturing.

The one-day roundtable will include sessions on current supply chain challenges, manufacturers’ perspectives on the root causes of disruptions and potential solutions and federal efforts to strengthen supply chain resilience. A facilitated discussion will follow each session. The meeting also will include an open public comment session.

Leah Mendelsohn Stone, JD, AABB’s vice president of public policy and advocacy, will moderate the opening session focused on the current state of blood manufacturing. John Hagins, president and CEO of The Community Blood Center and chair of the AABB Interorganizational Task Force on Domestic Disasters and Acts of Terrorism, will participate as a panelist. The panel will also include representatives from Blood Centers of America, the Plasma Protein Therapeutics Association and FDA’s Office of Blood Research and Review.

The second panel will be moderated by Mary Homer, PhD, program director, CBRN Radiological and Nuclear Medical Countermeasures Program, BARDA. Panelists include representatives from manufacturers of key equipment and supplies. Capt. John Oguntomilade, BDS, MPH, PhD, senior advisor, HHS, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy, will moderate the third panel, which will include speakers from FDA and the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response.

The roundtable will take place Tuesday, Sept. 29. Registration is free and open to the public but required to attend.