RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC--(Marketwire - November 2, 2007) - Five prominent orthopedic device
manufacturers recently disclosed payments to physicians and hospital groups
on their corporate websites. The Department of Justice required these
disclosures as part of a September agreement between the agency and the
device manufacturers.
Payments to physicians who consult with medical device and pharmaceutical
companies have come under intense scrutiny in recent years. The DOJ's
involvement is just the latest example of government initiatives to curb
bribes and kickbacks from drug and device manufacturers in exchange for
physicians and hospitals using their products. More than two dozen states
have introduced legislation pertaining to payment disclosures for
physicians' activities and Sen. Grassley (R-Iowa) is championing a bill at
the federal level requiring similar disclosures.
In an effort to respond to the increased scrutiny, pharmaceutical and
medical device manufacturers have struggled to determine fair-market value
for physicians' consulting and advisory services. A recent study from
business intelligence firm Cutting Edge Information reveals that most
companies rely on fair-market value benchmarks to remain compliant with
current regulations.
"Thought Leader Compensation: Establishing Fair-Market Value Procedures,"
available at
http://www.ThoughtLeaderCompensation.com, is a detailed study
designed to help pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers remain
compliant, as well as develop fee schedules for physicians' consulting and
advisory activities. The study provides fair-market value benchmarks of
hourly rates, as well as additional fees for services, such as:
-- Delivering a promotional or scientific speech
-- Leading, moderating or participating in an advisory panel
-- Writing a medical publication
"Compliance is an understandable challenge when federal and state
regulations change so quickly," said Elio Evangelista, research team leader
at Cutting Edge Information. "Companies need to develop a process to
determine reasonable physician payments, to document physician activities
and to stay on top of new regulations."
"Thought Leader Compensation: Establishing Fair-Market Value Procedures" is
a study of 46 pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device and third-party
providers' fee schedules for physicians in 20 therapeutic areas and in
various specialties. The report includes detailed fair-market value
benchmarks culled from top companies, such as Pfizer, Sanofi-Aventis and
Eli Lilly.
Download a free summary of "Thought Leader Compensation: Establishing
Fair-Market Value Procedures" or purchase the report at
http://www.cuttingedgeinfo.com/thoughtleadercompensation/index.htm#body.
Contact Information: CONTACT:
Amanda Zuniga
919-433-0210