Court Overturns Physician Data Ban Law

In the US, the Supreme Court has overturned a Vermont law which banned the use of physician prescription information for marketing purposes. The reform had been driven by IMS Health, SDI, Source Healthcare Analytics and a US pharma research association.

Since its introduction in 2007, the law had prohibited the sale, transmission, or use of 'prescriber-identifiable' data for marketing purposes, without the prescribing physician's consent.

Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire are the only states to have adopted these laws, although similar rules have been proposed in 25 states in the last three years.

By a six to three vote, the justices in the Sorrell v. IMS Health case found that the Vermont Prescription Confidentiality Law was in violation of the First Amendment's protection of commercial free speech.

'Today's ruling is clear and unmistakable - these types of laws violate the Constitution and do nothing to improve healthcare, reduce costs or protect privacy as proponents had claimed,' stated Harvey Ashman (pictured), IMS Health SVP and General Counsel. 'The availability of information on the prescribing practices of physicians enables communications about new medicines, best practices and safety updates. This information is essential to improved patient care and safety.'

IMS's case was supported by patient groups, researchers, two former Secretaries of the Department of Health and Human Services, and more than 50 healthcare stakeholders and researchers who filed 16 amicus briefs with the US Supreme Court.

However, Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell voiced his disappointment with the ruling, saying in a statement that the court had shown 'consistent bias' towards corporate interests.

'We knew going in that this Supreme Court has frequently sided with large corporations,' Sorrell said. 'Our challenge now will be to continue to work to protect medical privacy and reduce healthcare costs without violating the Supreme Court's ruling.'

The decision, briefs, and other information about the case are available at: www.imsfreespeech.org .