Health Minister Sussan Ley has announced a re-elected Coalition government will push for better regulatory harmonisation and mutual-recognition of clinical trials.
Speaking at the Australian Clinical Trials Alliance 2016 Breakfast and Award Ceremony in Melbourne, the minister committed the Coalition to investing $7 million in a range of reforms.
Minister Ley announced the Coalition will provide seed-funding to support a central point of contact for clinical trial sites to significantly improve communication and coordination across sites and jurisdictions.
The central point of contact will work with trial sponsors to address many of the issues identified over a number of years by successive governments.
The central point of contact will work with trial sponsors to:
- navigate and negotiate with multiple sites to improve recruitment and start-up timelines for large-scale clinical trials in Australia; and,
- establish and negotiate trial budgets and contracts as well as facilitating legal and ethics approvals across multiple sites;
The Coalition will provide ongoing administrative and professional support throughout the study, ensuring clinical trials are promoted to maximise patient recruitment.
They will also work with industry and hospitals to remove current age restrictions that can sometimes apply to trials, with the goal of improving access for young Australians.
The minister also said the Coalition will also develop a national communications strategy promoting the benefits of clinical trials with the goal of increasing participant identification and eligibility.