Meetings Michigan recently traveled to Orlando for the 8th Annual Pharmaceutical Meeting Management Forum. The event took place at the Marriott World Center March 25th - 28th. We were joined by 2 of our partners: Discover Kalamazoo and the Westin Detroit Metropolitan Airport.
With the ever changing rules and guidelines of the pharmaceutical meetings industry, the educational opportunities available at this conference are always second to none. Over 30 breakouts were available as well as panel forums (pictured above), general session speakers and more.
The Physician Payment Sunshine Act was a primary discussion point throughout the 4 day conference. As described by Elizabeth J. Cappiello, "The Physicial Payment Sunshine Act requires pharmaceutical, medical device, biological, and medical supply manufacturers to report to Health and Human Services (HHS) any "payment or other transfer of value" to physicians and teaching hospitals. The first reports will be due March 31, 2013 for the calendar year 2012 reporting period. The report must include information about the amount of the payment, the date on which the payment was made, the form of payment, and the nature of the payment (e.g., gift, consulting fees, entertainment). The PPSA specifically excludes certain transfers of value from this disclosure requirement."
What does this mean to the hospitality industry? Hotels and other vendors will soon be required to provide a full summary of any goods or services a doctor uses while attending an event hosted by a pharmaceutical company. From shuttle service to the airport to flip charts to a cup of coffee, every penny spent will need to be submitted. Suppliers from all over the country were eager to share their thoughts and concerns with industry experts. At the end of the conference, we left with many hard-pressing questions answered even though there are likely many more to come in 2012.
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