July 29, 2010

Surgeon Owned Distribution

We feel obligated to keep this discussion in front of all our readers. We reported on this in an editorial posted this past April.

JISRF is not an advocate of this type of activity and we encouraged caution to any surgeon considering it. Furthermore, we bring our readers attention to a recent white paper published by Stephen J. Immelt and Ronald L. Wisor Jr. of the law firm Hogan & Hartson.

I do not intend to quote their entire paper, but I do recommend that everyone take the time to read it.

Click here to download PDF

The following is their Conclusion:

Conclusion

At bottom, POIs are really about creating opportunities for physicians to profit from their
own referrals, a proposition antithetical to the fraud and abuse laws. The abuses inherent to the various POI business models are currently occurring in the markets for orthopedic and implants, presenting conflicts of interest that interfere with physician judgment about whether to perform a procedure, the best products to use and where procedures are performed. These conflicts of interest not only raise significant health and safety risks for patients, but also present significant legal risks for physicians, hospitals and implant manufacturers of being prosecuted or penalized for violating the fraud and abuse laws. Given the confluence of legal problems and ethical concerns, the questions is not whether POIs will come under government scrutiny, but when.

Stephen J. Immelt
Ronald L. Wisor Jr.

Timothy McTighe, Dr. H.S. (hc)
Executive Director
Joint Implant Surgery & Research Foundation