This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Physicians should prepare for intended – and unintended – consequences of Sunshine Act
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
KOLOA, Hawaii — There are intended consequences of health care reform, but there will likely be unintended consequences as well, a speaker said here.
The intended and “noble” consequences of health care reform are to provide health insurance coverage for those who do not have coverage, to increase access to health care and to control costs, Alan E. Reider, JD, MPH, of Arnold and Porter, said at the Hawaiian Eye meeting. The unintended consequences may be the elimination or reduction of health insurance coverage for those who currently have it, less availability of health care in general and higher costs, he said.
Alan E. Reider
As well, there are intended and likely unintended consequences of the Physician Payment Sunshine Act, Reider said, with intended consequences being to assure transparency of physicians’ relationships with industry; provide patients with information to make informed choices about their physicians; and provide a deterrent effect for abusive relationships between physicians and industry.
“This is my prediction about the unintended consequences of this law. Instead of transparency, there will be translucency,” Reider said. “My concern is that the information will be available but it will not be understood and it may be abused.”
There will be errors and there will be more investigations triggered by the data supplied, Reider said.
Data collection for the Sunshine Act began in August 2013; data submission is due March 31; a 45-day review period follows data submission before publication on September 30.
“Even though you don’t need to do anything under the law, you do need to prepare,” Reider said.
To mitigate unintended consequences, Reider said physicians should ensure that data reported is correct, in particular by using the 45-day review period, and making sure to be compliant. Furthermore, physicians should prepare their patients by proactively educating them on the physician’s relationship with industry and participation in new developments.
“There’s nothing wrong with being paid by industry, but how do you want your patients to find out?” he asked. –by Patricia Nale
Disclosure: Reider is a partner in the law firm Arnold and Porter LLP and has various financial relationships with health care providers, including drug and device companies.