Online conferences

Legislation: Not applicable.

MA Code of Conduct

The MA Code of Conduct as it relates to in-person events and hospitality also applies to online conferences.

Hospitality must be reasonable and appropriate, and therefore upholding the integrity and reputation of the industry.

• It is appropriate to use a meal delivery service to provide hospitality to a HCP in their workplace during their workday.  This should be done with the presence of a company staff member (whether physically or virtually) or in conjunction with a formal educational activity (such as a webinar, journal club, or grand rounds).
• It is not appropriate to provide hospitality to a HCP in the absence of a company staff member (whether physically or virtually), and without educational balance.
• Hospitality should not be provided to a HCP in their own home.  This is irrespective of whether they are participating in a webinar or other form of educational activity.

See Medicine Australia's Brief on Virtual Meetings.

Legislation: Not applicable.

MA Code of Conduct

Prescription pharmaceutical companies may host or sponsor educational conferences, symposia, and scientific meetings that are fully online.  The principles of providing current, balanced, accurate and scientific valid information still apply.

Companies will need to be mindful of:

• Access to these activities should be for verified HCPs only.  This means making sure video conferencing tools can be locked down for registered delegates only.
• Promotional messages must be relevant to the target audience (e.g., products should not be promoted unless there are attendees from a location where the product is registered).
• Unapproved products and indications should not be promoted.  Educational messages can be shared in the spirit of scientific exchange, however this must be approved by Medical teams and not a commercial function.

All necessary regulatory approvals must be obtained in advance. 

The scientific material shall be directly related to health or health services and shall depend on the most recent scientific references and the essential periodicals in the specialty.

The activity should be presented in English and should be in clear scientific language.

The individual who presents should be a specialized academic or have a postgraduate degree in the field of the scientific topic being presented.

The conference shall be interactive through which communication between the service provider and recipient is achieved.

There must be a supervisor responsible for the site and there has to be a clear mechanism to communicate with him.

The conference shall have clear procedures for admission and registration in the system.

The scientific material should be in the form of a scientific article along the lines of what is written in specialized scientific journals and references shall be mentioned.

The scientific material may be presented in the form of power point slides or a film provided that the material is accompanied by audio or written explanation.

Scientific material shall be evaluated by an independent scientific committee and members of university professors who are highly specialized in the same area of the scientific contents.

RTVSS: None. 

AFIDRO'S Code of Ethics: None. 

ANDI's Code of Ethics and Transparency: None.

RTVSS: None. 

AFIDRO'S Code of Ethics: None. 

ANDI's Code of Ethics and Transparency: None.

The Ordinance: no specific provisions.

The Code: no specific provisions.

The Ordinance: it is noteworthy that, pursuant to Article 22 (1) lit. 6 of the Ordinance, without health workers’ prior consent, it is prohibited to advertise medicinal products via e-mail or other means of electronic communication.

The Code: no specific provisions.

At least 75% of usual working hours must be allocated to the scientific/educational program of any event.

No specific rules.

In principle, the rules of promotion for physical and virtual meetings are the same. However, it is ENLI's recommendation that companies should carefully consider whether to provide refreshments to the participants when, for example, the rep.-meeting takes place virtually instead of the usual personal attendance, where, for example, fruit, cake, etc. is provided. Sending catering – especially if participants are sitting on their home addresses, can send the wrong signals. 

For on-demand meetings, it is ENLI's assessment that catering cannot be provided, as it cannot be ensured in these cases that the HCP will actually attend the continuing education meeting or when this will happen. 

Therefore, the considerations for catering are based solely on the live-streamed virtual meetings, and ENLI generally recommends that no catering be offered (ENLI, Guidance on ”The Pharmaceutical Industry's Code of Practice on Promotion etc., of Medicinal Products aimed at Healthcare Professionals" (The Promotion Code), p. 63-64). 

Section 21(8) of the Promotion Code stipulating the specific information which must be included in an event invitation addressed to a HCP applies to both physical as well as virtual events (ENLI, Guidance on ”The Pharmaceutical Industry's Code of Practice on Promotion etc., of Medicinal Products aimed at Healthcare Professionals" (The Promotion Code), p. 89).

The Finnish Medicines Act or Degree 

No specific rules 

Code of Ethics issued by Pharma Industry Finland 

No specific rules 

See the general principles on hospitality in Accommodation.

The Finnish Medicines Act or Degree 

No specific rules 

Code of Ethics issued by Pharma Industry Finland 

No specific rules 

See the general principles on hospitality in Accommodation.

No specific rules. Hospitality would not be justified in this case.

Please note that French law strictly regulates on-line health-related promotion (e.g. ANSM Internet Charter).

StGB

Generally, all key regulations apply to traditional events as well as online conferences.

No specific rules.

HWG

Generally, all key regulations apply to traditional events as well as online conferences.

UWG

Generally, all key regulations apply to traditional events as well as online conferences.

FSA Code of Conduct Healthcare Professionals

Generally, all key rules apply to traditional events as well as online conferences.

StGB

Not applicable.

HWG

Not applicable.

UWG

Not applicable.

FSA Code of Conduct Healthcare Professionals

Not applicable.

No specific rules

No specific rules

Compliance with applicable data privacy legal provisions shall be observed when using electronic communication means.

Electronic communications may also be implemented for promotional activities provided that express authorization has been previously granted by relevant authority.

There are no express rules or restrictions applying to online conferences.  However, Industry Codes to online conferences apply with any necessary modifications.

Generally speaking, acceptance of hospitality can create conflicts of interest and HCPs should be satisfied that their actions will not lead to a perceived loss of professional independence.

Medicines New Zealand Code of Practice

• All electronic promotional material must comply with the requirements for Full or Short advertisement (to include technical information and substantiating references). Information intended only for use by HCPs must be provided via a secure platform.

No specific rules.

With regard to webinars, the Agency for Medicinal Products and Medical Devices of the Republic of Slovenia recommends that online conferences invitations are sent in a manner that does not allow the abuse of passwords to access the same.

Companies must comply with applicable legislation, including data protection regulations.

• The promotion of medicines to HCPs through digital media should be conducted in a technical-scientific or professional context.
• Companies must ensure that this publicity is only aimed to these groups (HCPs).
• In promotional online events there must be a system in place in order to verify that the participants of the online conference are in fact HCPs and a clear and legible warning must be included indicating that this information is aimed exclusively at HCPs.

• No meals allowed.
• In case invitations to online events are advertised openly in printed or web based media which is directed to a larger target group, a copy of the invitation does not need to be sent to the healthcare principal. E.g.,: if a larger educational session, congress or symposia is advertised in a medical journal, or in the web edition of such, the specific invitation procedures do not need to be followed, presuming that all concerned employees have access to the medical journal.

If broadcasting to a UK audience, then the online conference may fall subject to UK advertising laws. Some key principles set out in UK advertising laws are:

• to ensure that any communications are clear, accurate and not misleading (this includes not exaggerating the capability or performance of the products); and
• to ensure that any claims made are within the scope of the CE marking, align with the intended purpose of the product, and are sustainable by reference to the technical file of the product.

General Principle in the US: US government- and industry-issued guidance generally distinguish between two categories:

1. The potential for an industry role relative to travel and hospitality expenses (payment for, or reimbursement for, such expenses) in connection with company-sponsored events, meetings, or HCP services.  This may include some meetings with educational or scientific content, but the content is controlled by the company.  This category may also include travel and hospitality associated with HCP’s engaged to provide services for the company (e.g., consultants or clinical investigators).  This category is the focus of the US responses provided above for this survey.  Relative to this category and with consideration of online formats, note:
   • Federal Guidance: In general, in light of significant restrictions on travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic, industry-sponsored or funded travel and hospitality is likely to be subject to a higher degree of scrutiny under the relevant standards (e.g., bona fide need, reasonableness). In one specific example, under the OIG Special Fraud Alert on Speaker Programs, industry can anticipate a higher degree of scrutiny of the justification for in-person events when it is possible to provide information virtually.
   • State Laws and Implementing Regulations: Some states specifically address the provision of honoraria for company-sponsored events.  For example, Maine limits the aggregate value of all cash and gifts received by an HCP for a particular speaking engagement to an annual limit of $500 in retail value. 
   • Industry Codes of Conduct: The PhRMA Code already addressed an expectation that if meals are provided there must be a reasonable expectation that the HCP will remain present throughout the event. Supplementing this, PhRMA’s Statement on Application of PhRMA Code Section 2 During Emergency Periods addresses the provision of meals in conjunction with virtual information presentations to HCPs during the COVID-19 pandemic. PhRMA states that meals should only be provided if there is a reasonable expectation that the HCP will remain present (e.g., virtually “present” over video or audio conferencing) throughout the event, and any meals offered in connection with informational presentation made by field sales representatives or their immediate managers should continue to be limited to in-office or in-hospital settings. 
2. The potential for industry financial support in connection with independent continuing medical education ("CME") or similar third-party conferences or events where the company does not control or influence content. (Note: If a company has engaged an HCP to present on behalf of the company at an event, this should be treated as a consulting arrangement, subject to considerations under category (1) above.)
   • The PhRMA Code states: "Since the giving of any subsidy directly to a health care professional by a company may be viewed as an inappropriate cash gift," any financial support should be given to the CME provider or conference’s sponsor, which, in turn, can use the money to reduce the overall  registration fee for all attendees.
   • The AdvaMed Code states that companies cannot provide direct contributions to individual HCPs or pay directly for individual HCPs registration fees. Educational grants provided by companies directly to third party program organizers can be used by these organizers to allow HCPs-in-training (for example, medical and nursing students, residents, etc.) to attend the program, provided that the Company does not select or control the selection of the specific HCPs-in-training who will benefit.
   • Some states (e.g., Massachusetts) specifically prohibit the reimbursement of costs for health care providers to participate in any CME event or third-party scientific or educational conferences, while others incorporate PhRMA Code and/or AdvaMed Code standards by reference.
   • The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education ("ACCME") Standards for Continuing Medical Education sets forth standards regarding industry support of CME.  For example, the ACCME states that industry grants may not be used for travel, lodging, honoraria, or personal expenses for non-teacher or non-author participants of a CME activity.  The CME provider may use commercial support to pay for travel, lodging, honoraria, or personal expenses for bona fide employees and volunteers of the provider, joint providers or educational partners.
   • Given that in the US, industry should not generally be providing funds or reimbursement directly to HCPs in connection with attendance at, or travel to and from, independent third-party events, this topic is not further covered in the US survey responses. 

Refer to the General Principle in the US describing the distinction between company-sponsored and independent third-party events.

With respect to company-sponsored events, PhRMA's Statement on Application of PhRMA Code Section 2 During Emergency Periods addresses the provision of meals in conjunction with virtual presentations to HCPs during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Meals may only be provided if there is a reasonable expectation that the HCP will remain present throughout the event, and meals should continue to be limited to in-office or in-hospital settings.