	
	The International Council for Harmonization (ICH)-formerly the International Conference on Harmonization-announced on Oct. 26, 2015 that through the establishment of its new Assembly and Management Committee, the organization will be able to establish a more stable operating structure. The committee is also now a legal entity under Swiss law. According to an ICH press release, the newly formed assembly will be “the overarching governing body that will be instrumental in facilitating future growth through the participation of new members.”

	ICH currently has members that are pharmaceutical regulators from the United States, European Union, Japan, Canada, and Switzerland, but it seeks to add more input from outside of these regions and hopes that new members in other areas will help it better deal with global regulatory challenges related to pharmaceutical development.

	Members at the inaugural meeting on Oct. 23, 2015 said the changes to the structure of ICH were necessary to allow the organization to adapt to the evolving fields of drug development and regulation, and to streamline the global drug-development process.

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The new committee will attempt to recruit regulatory professionals outside of existing ICH members to improve overall global pharmaceutical regulatory harmonization.