This post was written by Matthew E. Wetzel.
On March 11, 2009, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (the “Department”) released final regulations that impose restrictions on pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers’ sales and marketing activities. The final regulations—which implement section 14 of the Massachusetts Act to Promote Cost Containment, Transparency and Efficiency in the Delivery of Quality Health Care (the “Act”)— also require companies to file annual disclosures of all fees, payments and economic benefits paid to health care professionals that total $50 or more.
Massachusetts now joins seven other jurisdictions that have issued similar requirements. Currently, California and Nevada both require manufacturers to adhere to restrictions on marketing activities, and the District of Columbia, Maine, Minnesota, Vermont and West Virginia all mandate periodic disclosures of payments and other economic benefits to health care professionals. Massachusetts, however, has the broadest regulations in two regards. First, Massachusetts is the only state to include both a marketing code of conduct that is specifically enumerated in detail in the regulations as well as annual financial disclosure obligations. Other jurisdictions require adherence to a marketing code or disclosure, but not both. Second, Massachusetts is the first state to require financial disclosure from medical device companies. Financial disclosure requirements in other states currently only apply to pharmaceutical companies.
For additional details regarding the final Massachusetts marketing restrictions and disclosure requirements, including a list of key dates for compliance and a chart detailing marketing restrictions, please see Reed Smith’s full alert (.PDF), “Massachusetts Releases Final Restrictions on Drug and Device Marketing Activities, Annual Financial Disclosure Requirement.”
