As the halls of the Massachusetts State House are emptying out for the holidays, the pharmaceutical industry is working hard to push through special interest legislation when they think no one is paying attention. On Tuesday of this week, the Joint Committee on Public Health gave a favorable recommendation to H. 1507, a bill that would repeal most of the Prescription Drug Gift Ban and Disclosure Law, initially passed in 2008. This law limits drug industry salespeople from wining and dining physicians in order to promote the prescribing of their higher-cost, brand-name products. The law also requires annual reporting for these industries to disclose details about permitted payments made to physicians and other prescribers.
Now we’re concerned that this bill may go to the House floor next week, where it could pass without debate or a formal vote, and when many legislators are away for the holidays.
While repealing the Gift Ban may be a nice holiday gift for pharma, it certainly wouldn’t be the case for consumers across the Commonwealth. Repealing the ban would allow pharma to spend millions of dollars on fancy physician meals. These costs are ultimately passed on to individuals and families through higher copays and premiums.
In addition, repeal of the Gift Ban would compromise doctor-patient relationships. A patient shouldn’t have to wonder whether they are being prescribed a drug because it is useful, or because their doctor is influenced by benefits and perks provided by a manufacturer. Doctors have the duty to act in the best interest of their patients, not to help industry increase profits.
Health Care For All, as part of the Massachusetts Prescription Reform Coalition (MPRC), urges the members of the House to oppose H. 1507 and stand up for ethical marketing, transparency, and lower health care costs. So what’s on the top of our holiday wish list? We ask that drug marketing and industry profits do not come at the expense of patients.
-Alyssa Vangeli
There is a big reason why other states have not adopted this bad legislation. It does not bring down the cost of medicine or medical devices. It only hurts commerce at restaurants, entertainment venues and golf courses. Additionally, it limits the physicians from learning about new innovative treatments which frequently improve survival and quality of life. The last thing I want is my state rep operating on me or choosing my medicine, but this is what we currently have in Massachusetts. Please overturn this horrible legislation.
Again for the 100th time. Pharma has advertising/marketing budgets that will be spent regardless of the the Mass Pharma laws, if they cant spend the money in downtown Boston restaurants they will spend the same around of money on advertising and promotion through non local businesses. They only thing you are preventing is increased revenue to local businesses who hire & provide much needed jobs.
2nd: Any physician who wants to prescribe one of these more expensive medications has to go via a tier system that already exists that encourages generic drugs use 1st. If a physicians uses too many non generics he/she is flagged and better have a medical reason why the non generics are used at such a high rate. There is no “kick back” for MD who write these medications & Pharma reps can longer track which MD are writing what so this so called pressure to write these meds is a myth & the exception, not the rule.
3rd: The Pharma programs before the ban here in Mass were restricted to FDA approved medical information & slides only. The speakers were paid for there time but could only talk about FDA material, not embellish facts or discuss off label uses. These meeting were also a time where MDs from different fields could meet and debate the merit of the drug in question & often learning of other treatment protocols that had nothing to do with the sponsored medication program, a open forum of free discussion & shared information among colleges.
4th There is no data that the generic utilization rate among physicians in Ma has changed significantly in the past few years since this restrictive government imposed ban has gone into effect, generic rates remain about 70-75% before & after the ban. Cost saving is negative bc of the lost local revenue. Natural market expirations of recent medications such as Liptor and pending Plavix will save millions over anything the Mass pharam bill has or ever will.
Time for a bad law to expire too.