Medtronic to Disclose Payments to US Physicians

February 24, 2009—Medtronic, Inc. (Minneapolis, MN) announced that the company will voluntarily disclose information regarding their payments to US physicians, and will publicly report this information annually. They will do this by capturing payment data for all of its businesses beginning on January 1, 2010. The first disclosure will occur in March 2011 and will address payments made to physicians during the 2010 calendar year. The company will commission an annual third-party audit to demonstrate its commitment to the accuracy of these postings and make a summary of the audit results public. Medtronic stated that it will report the amounts paid for consulting fees, royalties, or honoraria to physicians who receive payments of $5,000 or more per year from Medtronic. Consulting agreements include counsel for areas such as education and training, clinical trial design and administration, and product design and safety. The company currently plans to report these data on its Web site, www.medtronic.com. In August 2008, Medtronic launched its online Donations Registry, which is available on its Web site. The registry publicizes the donations that Medtronic gives to United States customers or organizations affiliated with customers, including patient groups and medical societies.