Application of Harmonized Standards?

Standards
What are the harmonized standards applied to medical devices, the compliance to which will be evaluated in the Conformity Assessment process?

DIRECTIVE 98/79/EC
(18 June 2009)

Article 5
Reference to standards

1.  Member States shall presume compliance with the essential requirements referred to in Article 3 in respect of devices which are in conformity with the relevant national standards transposing the harmonised standards the reference numbers of which have been published in the Official Journal of the European Communities; Member States shall publish the reference numbers of such national standards.

2.  If a Member State or the Commission considers that the harmonised standards do not entirely meet the essential requirements referred to in Article 3, the measures to be taken by the Member States with regard to these standards and the publication referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be adopted by the procedure defined in Article 6(2).

3.  Member States shall presume compliance with the essential requirements referred to in Article 3 in respect of devices designed and manufactured in conformity with common technical specifications drawn up for the devices in List A of Annex II and, where necessary, the devices in List B of Annex II. These specifications shall establish appropriate performance evaluation and re-evaluation criteria, batch release criteria, reference methods and reference materials.

The common technical specifications shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure mentioned in Article 7(2) and be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Manufacturers shall as a general rule be required to comply with the common technical specifications; if for duly justified reasons manufacturers do not comply with those specifications they must adopt solutions of a level at least equivalent thereto.

Where, in this Directive, reference is made to harmonised standards, this is also meant to refer to the common technical specifications.

Article 6
Committee on Standards and Technical Regulations

1.  The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee set up by Article 5 of Directive 98/34/EC (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Committee’).

2.  Where reference is made to this Article, Articles 3 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

3.  The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

Article 7

1.  The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee set up by Article 6(2) of Directive 90/385/EEC.

2.  Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5 and 7 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC  shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be set at three months.

3.  Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1) to (4) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

4.  Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1), (2), (4) and (6) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.