MedPAC Debates Gift Disclosure Recommendations

Recently, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) debated four draft recommendations on the issue of physician gift disclosure out of concern that financial relationships between drug and device companies and physicians could inappropriately influence medical decisions.

The first draft recommendation would require manufacturers to report their financial relationships (of a suggested minimum of $100) with physicians and other prescribers, hospitals, medical schools, patient organizations and others. A second recommendation would require the posting of information submitted to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on a public web site. The third would require all hospitals and ambulatory surgery centers to annually report physicians owning an interest in the facility. The final recommendation would require HHS to report on the prevalence of financial relationships between hospitals and physicians.

Commissioners were generally supportive of the recommendations but expressed a variety of concerns, including the wisdom of putting Medicare billing numbers on a public Web site due to the potential for fraud. The biggest topic of discussion was how to report the free samples drug companies give to doctors on sales calls. Some commissioners noted this practice could curb the ability to pass along free samples to low-income patients while others noted that it can inappropriately influence prescribing patterns. MedPAC expects to formalize these recommendations in early November.

MedPAC is an independent Congressional agency established by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (P.L. 105-33) to advise the U.S. Congress on issues affecting the Medicare program. The Commission's statutory mandate is quite broad and it is also tasked with analyzing access to care, quality of care, and other issues affecting the Medicare Program.

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