ΤΡΟΜΟΣ ΣΤΑ ΥΠΕΡΑΤΛΑΝΤΙΚΑ ΛΑΜΟΓΙΑ

Vermont law targets medical industry payments to physicians, other providers.
On the front page of its Business Day section, the New York Times (5/20, B1, Singer) reports, "Cracking down on medical industry payments to doctors, the Vermont legislature has passed a law requiring drug and device makers to publicly disclose all money given to physicians and other healthcare providers, naming names and listing dollar amounts." The law "would also ban nearly all industry gifts, including meals, to doctors, nurses, medical staff, pharmacists, health plan administrators, and healthcare facilities." The measure, "scheduled to take effect on July 1, is believed to be the most stringent state effort to regulate the marketing of medical products to doctors," closing "a loophole in previous regulations that had allowed companies to keep specific expenses private by claiming them as trade secrets."