I've talked pretty extensively over the past couple of weeks on this blog about ACC’s position on conflicts of interest and relationships with industry. In a response released yesterday, the ACC again outlined its "stringent approach to ensuring responsible, transparent relationships, in which industry support has no influence on educational content, quality measures or scientific research.”

Institute of Medicine Report
We also signed on to a joint statement with several other medical societies responding to the April 28 Institute of Medicine report on the topic. On Tuesday, I interviewed current ACC President Fred Bove, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.C., on the report. He said, “The report made it very clear that there’s a value in working with industry ... We can’t divorce things, one from the other; but rather, we must come up with the proper solutions for transparency, with review processes that prevent bias ...” Check the video below for the full interview.  I was also interviewed by MedPage Today on the report.

The College is committed to responsible and transparent relationships with industry. While the potential for abuse is there, by following responsible, ethical, and transparent policies, industry support can produce positive patient and societal benefits, including much-needed funding for research, evidence-based quality improvement and unbiased medical education.