Much Ado About Arrangements: Compliance Perspectives on Conflicts of Interest in Physician Relationships

The United States Department of Justice and United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently have been scrutinizing conflicts of interest in the relationships between physicians and other sectors of the health care industry, including hospitals, device and pharmaceutical manufacturers, and durable medical equipment companies. These “relationships,” which are thought to skew medical decision-making, may include:

• Support for third-party educational conferences (CME)
  
• Vendor-sponsored product training and education
  
• Sales and promotional meetings with physician participation
  
• Consulting arrangements with physicians
  
• Gifts, paid entertainment, recreation, and meals offered to or accepted by physicians
  
• Charitable donations
  
• Research grants

During this Web conference, Foley Of Counsel Heidi A. Sorensen and Partner Judith A. Waltz explained the reasons for this increased interest from government regulators, discussed recent enforcement actions, and analyze compliance program strategies for responding. Topics covered included:

• Recent enforcement actions, including Lincare, Advanced Neuromodulation Systems, University Hospitals Health System, and the orthopedic device settlements
  
• OIG corporate integrity agreement requirements, including independent review organization (IRO) reviews
  
• Public disclosure of physician relationships as required in recent deferred prosecution agreements
  
• Practical tips for compliance programs addressing physician arrangements
  
  
  
  • Analyzing risk
    
  • Conducting an internal review
    
  • Arrangements databases
    
  • Seeking an OIG Advisory Opinion
    
  • Whether and when to disclose

Learn more about this and other Health Care Friday Focus Web Conference programs at Foley.com/fridayfocus.