DALLAS & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Conflixis, a new conflicts of interest risk management technology provider, today released its inaugural 2024 Open Payments Report, revealing critical insights into the financial relationships between healthcare providers and the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.
The report uncovers patterns of potentially inappropriate remuneration and shows that although the Open Payments program has enhanced transparency, disclosure alone has not deterred healthcare companies from patterns of potentially inappropriate payments, many of which have in fact grown more common.
“Our goal with the Open Payments Report is not to spotlight headline-grabbing anecdotes, but rather to tell the larger story of how money moves between industry and providers,” said Conflixis CEO Aaron Narva. “It’s a call to action for stakeholders across the industry.”
See recent coverage of Conflixis in the Wall Street Journal.
High Level Findings:
Many payments appear to camouflage inappropriate remuneration, including irregular combinations of consulting engagements, speaking fees, promotional fees and in-kind payments for food and beverage.
- Industry guidelines about interactions with providers suggest that food and beverage payments be “modest” and not part of an entertainment or recreational event, yet high dollar food and beverage payments and group events reached their highest levels ever in 2023.
- Despite warnings from regulators that repeat payments for speaking engagements or for attendance of non-educational events constitute a red flag, there were over 6,600 instances in which a company made at least ten payments to a provider to participate in a non-educational or non-consulting event in 2023.
- Contrary to voluntary guidance (and some Anti-Kickback charges/civil settlements) from the federal government that honoraria payments are “generally reserved for a brief, one-time activity,” repeat honoraria payments to the same provider reached more than $33 million in 2023.
- Drug and device makers who fund researchers evaluating their medical technologies have also made $2.3 billion in parallel cash and in-kind payments to them since 2016, threatening the integrity of the scientific enterprise.
Underscoring the value of technology in effective risk management, Narva said: “The insights our technology has uncovered emphasize the importance of transparency and the critical role that data analysis plays in helping healthcare employers avoid the steep costs of conflicts.”
For a copy of the report visit https://www.conflixis.com/theopreport.
CMS Open Payments Database
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) established the Open Payments program in 2013 to enhance transparency in financial relationships between healthcare providers and the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. The database contains detailed information on payments made to providers, including fees for consulting, speaking, and honoraria, as well as in-kind payments for food and beverage, travel, and lodging.
About Conflixis
Conflixis is a conflict of interest risk management company that is changing the way organizations identify, manage and mitigate risk arising from conflicts of interest. Leveraging decades of experience in anti-corruption, anti-money laundering and fraud, Conflixis provides a sophisticated platform for identifying and managing the everyday impact of conflicts of interest. Our unique platform offers real-time, customized analysis of both internal data sets and the public record, enabling clients to go beyond the file and forget systems of the past.
For more information on the 2024 Open Payments Report or to learn about Conflixis’ technology, please contact:
Jessica Francis
