Waning Pharma Support of CME The Plight of For-Profit MECCs
Recent headlines pulled from traditional media as well as from the blogo-sphere paint a bleak picture of the future of commercial support for continuing medical education (CME). Is the pharmaceutical industry getting out of the business of supporting CME?
This article reviews trends in pharma CME support and critiques of that support. The article begins with a review of recent data from ACCME, which indicates that there is a shift in pharma CME funding from MECCs to physician societies. Then, a synopsis is presented of the July 29, 2009, United States Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing on “Medical Research and Education: Higher Learning or Higher Earning?,” which featured testimony from experts who were supportive and critical regarding the benefits of industry-sponsored support of CME. Lastly, the article presents new data from the “What’s the Best Way for Pharma to Support CME?” survey, which asked respondents opinions about several alternative ways for pharmaceutical companies to continue to support CME without drawing the ire of Congress and other critics
Topic headings include:
- The Plight of For-Profit MECCs
- Advertising and Exhibits at CME Events
- Senate Hearing Focuses on CME
- Nissen: ACCME Needs to Go Away
- Kopelow: ACCME Has Made Improvements
- Stossel Offers Anecdotal Evidence
- What’s the Alternative?
- Is Single-Sponsored CME Biased?
- What About Alternative Funding Sources?
- The Pfizer Solution
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PMN87-03
Issue: Vol. 8, No. 7: August 2009
Word Count: 4243
