Advisory Committees

The Health Products and Food Branch of Health Canada has established a number of advisory groups to provide advice and, in some cases, to act as sounding boards to the branch and to other Health Canada officials as they carry out their work.

Please contact us to submit your comments or suggestions on the usefulness and design of this public participation tool.

Table of Contents

• Biologics and Genetic Therapies Directorate (BGTD)
  • Expert Advisory Committee on Blood Regulations
  • Expert Advisory Committee on Cells, Tissues and Organs
• Food Directorate (FD)
  • Working Group on Dietary Sodium Reduction
  • Food Regulatory Advisory Committee (FRAC)
• Marketed Health Products Directorate (MHPD)
  • Expert Advisory Committee on the Vigilance of Health Products (EAC-VHP)
• Natural Health Products Directorate (NHPD)
  • Natural Health Products Program Advisory Committee (NHP PAC)
• Office of Nutrition Policy and Promotion (ONPP)
  • The Infant Feeding Expert Advisory Group
  • Expert Advisory Group on National Nutrition Pregnancy Guidelines
• Policy, Planning and International Affairs Directorate (PPIAD)
  • Environmental Assessment Working Group
  • HPFB Advisory Committee (formerly ACM)
  • Paediatric Expert Advisory Committee
• Therapeutic Products Directorate (TPD)
  • SAC (Scientific Advisory Committee) - Infectious Diseases Therapies
  • SAC (Scientific Advisory Committee) - Metabolic & Endocrine Therapies
  • SAC (Scientific Advisory Committee) - Respiratory and Allergy Therapies
• Veterinary Drugs Directorate (VDD)
  • Canadian Animal Health Products Regulatory Advisory Committee
  • Expert Advisory Committee on Antimicrobial Resistance Risk Assessment
  • Expert Advisory Committee on Veterinary Natural Health Products

Biologics and Genetic Therapies Directorate (BGTD)

Expert Advisory Committee on Blood Regulations

Purpose:

To provide BGTD with timely advice on federal responsibilities within the national blood system related to blood, blood components, and blood products, and associated issues.

Members:

11

Meeting Frequency:

2 times per year, teleconferences as needed.

Website:

Expert Advisory Committee on Blood Regulations

Expert Advisory Committee on Cells, Tissues and Organs

Purpose:

The Expert Advisory Committee on Cells, Tissues and Organs provides BGTD with timely advice on issues under federal responsibility for regulating the safety, quality and efficacy of cells, tissues, and organs, as therapeutic products intended for transplantation.

Members:

10

Meeting Frequency:

Once a year and two teleconferences as needed.

Website:

Expert Advisory Committee on Cells, Tissues and Organs

Food Directorate (FD)

Working Group on Dietary Sodium Reduction

Purpose:

The Sodium Working Group was established to develop and oversee implementation of a strategy that would result in lowering the sodium content of the diets of Canadians to within the range recommended by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies.

Members:

24

Meeting Frequency:

3-4 times a year

Website:

Working Group on Dietary Sodium Reduction

Food Regulatory Advisory Committee (FRAC)

Formation:

Spring 2010

Purpose:

The FRAC will provide the FD with broad expert strategic policy advice on the safety of food products. The FRAC will also provide advice on matters relating to strategic planning, priority setting and environmental scanning of issues related to food safety, nutritional quality or other issues related to the FD's mandate. The FD always retains decision-making authority and responsibilities.

Members:

20-25

Meeting Frequency:

2 times a year

Website:

Food Regulatory Advisory Committee

Marketed Health Products Directorate (MHPD)

Expert Advisory Committee on the Vigilance of Health Products (EAC-VHP)

Purpose:

The mandate of the EAC-VHP is to provide HPFB with ongoing, broad, strategic policy advice on the safety and therapeutic effectiveness of marketed health products for human use.

Members:

17

Meeting Frequency:

2 times a year

Website:

Expert Advisory Committee on the Vigilance of Health Products

Natural Health Products Directorate (NHPD)

Natural Health Products Program Advisory Committee (NHP PAC)

Purpose:

To provide the Natural Health Product Program Directorates with views, feedback, advice and recommendations, including technical, scientific, ethical and communications, on current and emerging issues relevant to the Canadian regulatory framework for natural health products, in order to help facilitate Health Canada decision making.

Members:

Up to 15

Meeting Frequency:

2 face-to face per year/ all others by teleconference

Website:

Natural Health Products Program Advisory Committee

Office of Nutrition Policy and Promotion (ONPP)

The Infant Feeding Expert Advisory Group

Formation:

Spring 2010

Purpose:

Guide the revision of infant feeding guidelines for the healthy term infant by:

• assisting in the collection and review of current evidence to inform guideline revision
• reviewing and commenting on the draft guidelines and supporting materials
• liaising with their respective organizations to coordinate their review and sign-off of the guidelines prior to publication
• coordinating the broad dissemination of the guidelines

Members:

4-8

Meeting Frequency:

1-2 times per year
2-4 teleconferences per year

Website:

The Infant Feeding Expert Advisory Group

Expert Advisory Group on National Nutrition Pregnancy Guidelines

Purpose:

To provide advice and recommendations to Health Canada on the revision of the recommendations pertaining to the following two sections of the 1999 document Nutrition for Healthy Pregnancy - National Guidelines for the Childbearing Years: Nutrients of Special Concern; and Gestational Weight Gain.

Members:

10

Meeting Frequency:

1-2 a year
Teleconferences as needed

Website:

Expert Advisory Group on National Nutrition Pregnancy Guidelines

Policy, Planning and International Affairs Directorate (PPIAD)

Environmental Assessment Working Group

Purpose:

To provide broad, strategic advice on policy, technical, operational and regulatory issues to Health Canada and Environment Canada on the development of appropriate Environmental Assessment Regulations for new substances contained in products regulated under the Food & Drugs Act and the revision, prioritization and management of substances on the In Commerce List (ICL).

Members:

24

Meeting Frequency:

3-4 times a year

Website:

Environmental Assessment Working Group

HPFB Advisory Committee (formerly ACM)

Purpose:

Forum for exchanging ideas, opinions, expertise and advice between external HPFB stakeholders and senior HPFB officials.  The HPFB AC is comprised of highly respected experts from academia, industry, medical providers, patient, consumer and health technology communities who volunteer their time to provide the Branch with broad strategic policy advice on matters relating to the Branch's pre- and post-market regulatory mandate relating to health products.

Members:

13

Meeting Frequency:

2 times a year

Paediatric Expert Advisory Committee

Purpose:

To provide HPFB with broad strategic advice on how to strengthen the availability, use and sharing of information specific to the paediatric population and pregnant and nursing women on the benefits and risks of health products, food safety and promoting health nutrition information.

Members:

21

Meeting Frequency:

2 face-to-face annual meetings plus additional teleconferences as needed

Website:

Paediatric Expert Advisory Committee

Therapeutic Products Directorate (TPD)

SAC (Scientific Advisory Committee) - Infectious Diseases Therapies

Formation:

Spring 2010

Purpose:

To provide Health Canada with ongoing and timely scientific, technical, medical and clinical advice on the evaluation of safety, efficacy, and effectiveness of drugs used for the treatment of infectious disease as well as policy issues.

Members:

15

Meeting Frequency:

1 time per year

SAC (Scientific Advisory Committee) - Metabolic & Endocrine Therapies

Purpose:

To provide ongoing and timely scientific, medical and clinical advice on current and emerging issues related to the work of HC pertaining to metabolic and endocrine therapy drugs.

Members:

12

Meeting Frequency:

As needed

Website:

Metabolic & Endocrine Therapies

SAC (Scientific Advisory Committee) - Respiratory and Allergy Therapies

Purpose:

To provide HC with ongoing scientific, technical and medical advice on the evaluation of safety and effectiveness of drugs and medical devices as well as policy issues.

Members:

21

Meeting Frequency:

2 times a year

Website:

Respiratory and Allergy Therapies

Veterinary Drugs Directorate (VDD)

Canadian Animal Health Products Regulatory Advisory Committee

Purpose:

To make recommendations, in cooperation with the Veterinary Biologics Section of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, designed to improve regulatory efficiency and cost effectiveness relative to animal medications, while ensuring Canadian standards for human, animal and environmental safety and product efficacy are met.

Members:

17

Meeting Frequency:

2 or 3 times a year

Expert Advisory Committee on Antimicrobial Resistance Risk Assessment

Purpose:

Provides ongoing and timely advice to VDD on the assessment of the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) risks attributable to new and existing antimicrobial agents.

Members:

14

Meeting Frequency:

As required

Website:

Antimicrobial Resistance Advisory Committee

Expert Advisory Committee on Veterinary Natural Health Products

Purpose:

The Expert Advisory Committee on Veterinary Natural Health Products (EAC-VNHP) provides HPFB with recommendations regarding policies related to the development of a suitable regulatory approach for veterinary natural health products.

Members:

25

Meeting Frequency:

2-3 times a year

Website:

Expert Advisory Committee on Veterinary Natural Health Products