Commission deconstructs its EU Scientific Committee on medical devices

The Commission has reorganised its structure of scientific advisory committees and in the process almost deconstructed that dealing with medical devices and medicinal products, but signalled that devices are expected to give rise to future scientific concerns.

The Commission says that the number of requests for scientific advice required from the former Committee on Medicinal Products and Medical Devices are "too few to justify its continuation as a separate committee. However, in view of the potential importance of this area and in particular of medical devices, it is necessary to retain the capacity to provide scientific advice through an appropriate Scientific Committee". Its remit has therefore been folded into a new committee named the Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR), whose remit is to provide opinions on questions concerning emerging or newly identified risks and on broad, complex or multi-disciplinary issues requiring a comprehensive assessment of risks to consumer safety or public health and related issues not covered by other Community risk assessment bodies.

The other two main consumer protection Scientific Committees are on Consumer Products (SCCP) and on Health and Environmental Risks (SCHER). Responsibility for five of the eight previous committees has been transferred to the European Food Safety Agency. Commission Decision of 3 March 2004, 2004/210/EC, published in the OJ L 66/45, 4.3.2004.

For further details please contact Christopher Hodges at [email protected] or on +44 (0)207 367 2738.