Medical Data Collection Firms File Suits In Maine, Vermont Over Physician Prescription Confidentiality Laws

Main Category: Litigation / Medical Malpractice
Also Included In: Primary Care / General Practice
Article Date: 04 Sep 2007 - 3:00 PDT

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Three medical data collection and analysis companies on Wednesday filed lawsuits in federal court challenging laws in Maine and Vermont that make physicians' prescription-writing practices confidential, the AP/Contra Costa Times reports. The lawsuits were filed by Connecticut-based IMS Health, Pennsylvania-based Wolters Kluwer Health and Verispan. The three companies are seeking to block Maine and Vermont from enforcing the laws, which take effect Jan. 1, 2008.

According to the complaints, the laws are unconstitutional and violate the First Amendment by prohibiting the transfer of legally obtained information and the 14th Amendment by impeding interstate commerce. The complaint filed in Maine states, "Without the right to publish prescriber-indentifiable data, the health care community will lose a powerful tool to help monitor the safety of new medications and ensure that patients taking them are not harmed." The complaint also says the laws go against a national trend toward greater health care transparency.

A similar law in New Hampshire was overturned in April by a federal judge, who ruled that it placed unconstitutional restrictions on free speech. The decision is being appealed. After the New Hampshire ruling, Vermont amended its legislation to allow physicians to release information to drug companies if they choose.

Paul Harrington, the executive director of the Vermont Medical Society, said, "We feel the laws are appropriate in that they keep the physicians' prescribing information out of the hands of the drug company marketers and curtail the drug companies being able to effectively go into the physicians' offices, having the prescribing information and tailoring their marketing, knowing what the physician is prescribing." Vermont state Sen. Mark MacDonald (D) said the state's law contains "different language" than the New Hampshire law "to meet the objections of the court in an effort to protect our citizens and doctors from this unnecessary invasion."

Steven Rowe, the attorney general of Maine, said his state "will vigorously defend the constitutionality of the law and oppose efforts to have its enforcement enjoined" (Adams, AP/Contra Costa Times, 8/30).

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