Ensuring the transparency in the pharmaceutical sector - disclosing transfers of value from companies to healthcare professionals and healthcare organizations

Abstract

Introduction In the modern era we live, interactions and relations between healthcare professionals (HCPs) and health-care organizations (HCOs) on one side and the pharmaceutical industry on the other are inevitable. To ensure a higher level of transparency in the pharmaceutical sector, in July, 2013, the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) adopted the “Code on Disclosure of Transfers of Value from Pharmaceutical Companies to Healthcare Professionals and Healthcare Organizations”. This specific document is applicable in 33 European countries and requires each EFPIA member to disclose information about any direct payments or other forms of support to HCPs and HCOs. Aim The aim of this study was to overview the nature of the relationship between pharmaceutical companies and HCPs and HCOs, the existing practice for disclosure of transfers of value from pharmaceutical companies to HCPs and HCOs, as well as the disclosed financial information for Bulgaria. Materials and Methods Web-based search of published scientific articles, current legislative acts, as well as disclosed financial information by individual pharmaceutical companies. Results The disclosed data for Bulgaria shows that pharmaceutical companies have declared transfers of value to HCPs and HCOs totaling over 20 million leva. More than half of these were made as individual named disclosures, while the remaining part were given as an aggregate amount in the case when the information could not be disclosed on an individual basis for legal reasons. Conclusions Adopting the EFPIA Disclosure Code is expected to be beneficial for the pharmaceutical industry, HCPs and patients. It provides a level of openness, enables HCPs to freely and efficiently receive equitable remuneration for their expertise in collaboration with pharmaceutical companies, as well as demonstrates to the public that physicians’ decisions regarding patient therapy are not influenced by financial incentives.