Vermont strengthens gift ban
May 12, 2009
The Vermont legislature is getting tougher on the pharmaceutical industry by passing a bill that tightens up the state’s existing gift and payment disclosure law.
The new law closes a trade secret loophole that allowed pharmaceutical companies to submit most data in aggregate form. The bill also expands the disclosure requirement to medical device and biologics manufacturers.
The new bill requires every manufacturer of prescribed products to disclose the value, nature, purpose, and recipient information of any allowable expenditure or gift including:
- Anything of value provided to a healthcare provider for free
- Any payment, food, entertainment, travel, subscription, advance, service, or anything else of value provided to a healthcare provider
The bill specifically exempts reporting of:
- Royalties and licensing fees
- Rebates and discounts for prescribed products
- Payments for clinical trials
- Samples for distribution to patients
- Scholarship or other support for medical students, residents, and fellows to attend a significant educational, scientific, or policy-making conference or seminar
- Provision, distribution, dissemination, or receipt of peer-reviewed academic, scientific, or clinical articles or journals that serve a genuine educational purpose
Vermont Governor Jim Douglas must still sign the bill for it to become law.