No Sunshine in Gift Limit Legislation
Michael Hart -- Tradeshow Week, 4/29/2008 12:15:00 PM
Two U.S. congressmen have introduced what they call the Physician Payment Sunshine Act that would force pharmaceutical and medical device makers to report any gift worth $25 or more to a doctor.“Gifts and payments change doctors’ behavior,” said Democratic U.S. Rep. Pete Stark of California. “If they didn’t, drug, device and medical supply companies wouldn’t bother.”
According to Molly Simmons, press secretary for the bill’s other sponsor, Republican U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon, the bill hasn’t managed to get much traction since it was introduced in mid-March.
“It’s been referred to a subcommittee,” Simmons said. “Otherwise, I can’t give you much of a timeline.”
But the so-called federal Sunshine Act is the least of health care show managers’ and exhibitors’ regulatory problems.
On April 20, the Massachusetts State Senate unanimously passed a bill that, if enacted, would ban all gifts of all kinds from pharmaceutical companies to doctors – and set the penalty for noncompliance at a fine of as much as $5,000.
The bill still has to pass the Massachusetts House of Representatives and be signed by Gov. Deval Patrick before it becomes law. But if it did, Massachusetts would join Minnesota and Vermont as states with mandatory physician gift reporting laws on the books. In Minnesota, the gift value limit is $50; in Vermont, $25. In Massachusetts, it would be zero – any gift of any kind would have to be reported.
“So, it’s the states we’re worried about,” said Healthcare Convention & Exhibitors Assn. Executive Vice President Eric Allen.
The Massachusetts bill, if passed, he added, would apply to physicians from Massachusetts attending health care meetings or shows anywhere. It would also make it difficult for meeting planners or show organizers with events in Boston, for instance, to pay honoraria or cover travel expenses of physicians speaking at conferences or meetings.
“The theory is understandable,” Allen said. “No one wants what is defined as inducement to sale but, being realistic, a $25 item is not going to do that. This does create a real problem for exhibitors.”
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