Have you received any kind of support from a pharmaceutical or device company? Maybe some research funding? Honoraria?

Beginning in 2012, pharmaceutical companies, device manufacturers, and other health care companies will be required to report this and other activities to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Companies that fail to make a full report could face fines of up to $1,000,000.

Prescription drug and device samples are also excluded from this reporting provision, but there is a different section of the health reform law that mandates reporting on samples to HHS. Some educational materials are exempt, if they are for the benefit of the patient. Also rebates and discounts, loans of covered devices, items provided under warranty, dividend or investment interests in a publicly-traded security or mutual fund, and payments made to a physician who is a patient, or an employee, of the reporting company.

Starting in January 1, 2012, pharmaceutical manufacturers must record all transfers of value to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Transfers of value include

• cash or in-kind transfers to all covered recipients including:
• compensation;
• food;
• entertainment or gifts;
• travel;
• consulting fees;
• honoraria;
• research funding or grants;
• education or conference funding;
• stocks or stock options;
• ownership or investment interest;
• royalties or licenses;
• charitable contributions; and
• any other transfer of value as described by the secretary.

For the calendar year 2012, all information must be submitted by the end of March 2013 and annually after that.

The Department of Health and Human Services is then required to post this information on a publicly available, search-able on-line database by September 30, 2013, and on June 30 of each year after that.

Each physician’s name, address, and national provider ID will be reported by the company to the Department and eventually be posted on the search-able database. Your provider ID will not be part of the search-able database.

Allan Coukell, director of the Pew Prescription Project, said these aspects of health care reform will help protect patients.

“Patients deserve to know if their doctors are receiving money from drug companies,” he said. “Congress has added much needed transparency to the financial relationships between the pharmaceutical industry and physicians. The reporting requirements in the health care legislation will better protect patients and will help restore trust in our health care system.”

According to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine cited by Coukell, the vast majority of physicians in the United States have some kind of financial relationship with pharmaceutical manufacturers.

“We also know that companies spend at least $25 billion each year marketing to doctors,” he said. “While many relationships between academic medicine and industry are necessary and beneficial, they also may create potential conflicts of interest that can influence prescribing and drive up costs.”