In the last few days, two organizations: the AAMSE and ACME, released their positions on CEJA: Report 1 of The Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs: Industry Support of Professional Education in Medicine
American Association of Medical Society Executives (AAMSE) is a professional organization of approximately 900 medical society executives and staff specialists who represent more than 380 physician member organizations. Member organizations include county, regional, state, state specialty, national, national specialty and international medical societies, as well as affiliated healthcare organizations and industry partners. AAMSE AMA CEJA Position Letter
The Alliance for Continuing Medical Education (Alliance) is an international membership organization of more than 2,500 professionals from medical schools, hospitals, specialty societies, state medical societies, medical education and communication companies, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, and related organizations devoted to designing and implementing continuing medical education (CME) activities for physicians. Alliance AMA CEJA Response
Other groups that have recommended rejection of the CEJA recommendations include:
North American Association of Medical Education and Communication Companies, Inc. (NAAMECC), the trade organization for medical education and communication companies, and the Coalition for Healthcare Communication (CHC) NAAMECC Coalition CEJA Letter
Council for Medical Specialty Societies (CMSS) with 32 medical specialty society members representing more than 500,000 physicians. CMSS AMA CEJA Letter
The basic reasons for rejection include:
- Respectfully disagree with the Council’s conclusions and must oppose the report’s primary recommendation, specifically that “Individual physicians and institutions of medicine, such as medical schools, teaching hospitals, and professional organizations (including state and medical specialty societies) must not accept industry funding to support professional education activities.”
- Great effort has taken place to by CME providers to comply with the ACCME Standards for Commercials Support. There have been substantial improvements in regulating CME in the last few years. CME providers have committed substantial resources to eliminate “commercial bias”.
- The report makes no distinction between Certified CME Activities and Promotional Programs.
- There would be a great financial and resource burden created on the medical system by adoption of this report.
- There have been no viable alternatives suggested by the report.