SF 2189

as introduced - 83rd Legislature (2003 - 2004) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to health; modifying gift ban for 
  1.3             prescription drug practitioners; amending Minnesota 
  1.4             Statutes 2002, section 151.461. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 151.461, is 
  1.7   amended to read: 
  1.8      151.461 [GIFTS TO PRACTITIONERS PROHIBITED.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [DEFINITIONS.] (a) As used in this section 
  1.10  and section 151.47, subdivision 1, paragraph (f), the terms 
  1.11  defined in this subdivision have the meaning given them. 
  1.12     (b) "Practitioner" means a physician, hospital, nursing 
  1.13  home, pharmacist, pharmacy, or health benefit plan administrator 
  1.14  or any other person authorized to prescribe or dispense 
  1.15  prescription drugs in this state. 
  1.16     (c) "Gift" means a payment, subscription, advance, or 
  1.17  service; entertainment; or anything worth a retail value of more 
  1.18  than $20 given in a single calendar year, unless consideration 
  1.19  of equal or greater value is received.  "Gift" does not include: 
  1.20     (1) professional samples of a drug provided to a 
  1.21  practitioner for free distribution to patients; 
  1.22     (2) a payment to the sponsor of a medical conference, 
  1.23  professional meeting, or other educational program, provided the 
  1.24  payment is not made directly to a practitioner, is used solely 
  1.25  for bona fide educational purposes, and the practitioner is a 
  2.1   speaker for a substantial portion of the conference, meeting, or 
  2.2   program; 
  2.3      (3) reasonable honoraria and payment of the reasonable 
  2.4   expenses of a practitioner who serves on the faculty at a 
  2.5   professional conference or meeting, provided the conference or 
  2.6   meeting is for a bona fide educational purpose and the 
  2.7   practitioner has substantial responsibility directly related to 
  2.8   the conference or meeting; 
  2.9      (4) compensation for the substantial professional or 
  2.10  consulting services of a practitioner in connection with a 
  2.11  genuine research project that involves an approved clinical 
  2.12  trial and is designed to answer specific questions about 
  2.13  vaccines, new therapies, or new ways of using known treatments; 
  2.14     (5) publications and educational materials; or 
  2.15     (6) salaries or other benefits paid to employees about whom 
  2.16  the manufacturer or wholesale drug distributor is required to 
  2.17  file Form W-4 or Form 1099 with the Internal Revenue Service. 
  2.18     Subd. 2.  [PROHIBITED ACTS.] It is unlawful for any 
  2.19  manufacturer or wholesale drug distributor, or any agent 
  2.20  thereof, to offer or give any gift of value to a practitioner, 
  2.21  an employee, spouse, or relative of a practitioner, or any 
  2.22  person with the ability to influence a practitioner's decision 
  2.23  regarding ordering, purchasing, prescribing, or dispensing 
  2.24  prescription drugs in this state.  A medical device manufacturer 
  2.25  that distributes drugs as an incidental part of its device 
  2.26  business shall not be considered a manufacturer, a wholesale 
  2.27  drug distributor, or agent under this section.  As used in this 
  2.28  section, "gift" does not include: 
  2.29     (1) professional samples of a drug provided to a prescriber 
  2.30  for free distribution to patients; 
  2.31     (2) items with a total combined retail value, in any 
  2.32  calendar year, of not more than $50; 
  2.33     (3) a payment to the sponsor of a medical conference, 
  2.34  professional meeting, or other educational program, provided the 
  2.35  payment is not made directly to a practitioner and is used 
  2.36  solely for bona fide educational purposes; 
  3.1      (4) reasonable honoraria and payment of the reasonable 
  3.2   expenses of a practitioner who serves on the faculty at a 
  3.3   professional or educational conference or meeting; 
  3.4      (5) compensation for the substantial professional or 
  3.5   consulting services of a practitioner in connection with a 
  3.6   genuine research project; 
  3.7      (6) publications and educational materials; or 
  3.8      (7) salaries or other benefits paid to employees. 
  3.9      Subd. 3.  [ENFORCEMENT.] A person who violates this section 
  3.10  is subject to license revocation by the board and a civil 
  3.11  penalty of $10,000 per violation.  Each prohibited gift or gift 
  3.12  offer constitutes a separate violation.  This section may be 
  3.13  enforced by the board according to sections 151.47 to 151.50 and 
  3.14  by the attorney general according to section 8.31 or 325F.70 and 
  3.15  the public remedies available under those sections apply to this 
  3.16  section, except that the civil penalty is $10,000 per 
  3.17  violation.  Civil prosecution by the attorney general for 
  3.18  actions taken in violation of this section is not exclusive and 
  3.19  does not prevent any other applicable civil, criminal, or 
  3.20  administrative remedies and penalties for the same actions.