Planned reforms could narrow, but not close, U.S.-China trial start gap

A package of FDA reforms announced this week could slash the time required to launch a clinical trial. But even if all goes according to plan, the gap between the U.S. and China would be narrowed, not closed.

The timeline in the U.S. would, in the best-case scenario, decrease to about 15 months. This is less than half the current U.S. worst-case scenario, according to FDA — and about seven months longer than the Chinese timeline. ...