Medicines Control Agency

The Medicines Control Agency ( MCA ) was until 31 March 2003, the medical regulatory authority for medicines in the UK . Her tasks included the operation of an approval system for drugs before their market launch, the monitoring of drugs already approved on the market, the publication of and compliance with quality standards for drugs as well as the international representation of British approval criteria.

With effect from April 1, 2003, the Medical Control Agency (MCA) and the Medical Device Agency (MDA), each responsible for drugs and medical devices, were merged in the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

criticism

In contrast to other European approval authorities, the MCA was a commercial operation and thus relied on fee income from the approval of drugs. Due to this special feature of its financing, the MCA functioned preferentially as a “reference authority” in decentralized drug approval procedures .