On February 7 2014 the Centres for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that Physician Payments Sunshine Act registration and data submission for applicable manufacturers and group purchasing organisations will be executed in two phases. Detailed payment information covering August to December 2013 will not be due by March 31, as required by statute, but instead by no earlier than May 2014.

During what CMS characterises as Phase 1, which will last from February 18 to March 31 2014, applicable manufacturers and group purchasing organisations will be able to register and submit "aggregate 2013 payment data" using CMS's Enterprise Portal. However, the announcement does not define what specific information constitutes 'aggregate' data. An executive-level officer (authorised official) must complete registration, although the authorised official can then delegate data submission responsibilities to other authorised representatives upon completion of registration. The authorised officer or authorised representatives must then submit the manufacturer's corporate profile information and aggregate 2013 payment data into CMS's Enterprise Portal. If any data elements are missing or improperly formatted, CMS will provide the manufacturer with additional instructions for correction. CMS will ultimately use the data submitted in Phase 1 to create the manufacturer's entity profile in the Open Payments system in preparation for Phase 2 data submission.

Phase 2 is slated to begin in "approximately" May 2014 and will extend for no fewer than 30 days, according to the announcement. Phase 2 requires the authorised official to:

  • register the company and himself or herself in the Open Payments system;
  • confirm the accuracy of the manufacturer's entity profile data based on the information submitted in Phase 1; and
  • submit and attest to the accuracy of the "detailed 2013 payment data".

Review and correction phases are scheduled to begin by August 1, and guidance on these processes will be announced in Spring 2014. In the same announcement, CMS also declared that it will not enforce penalties for non-compliance in reporting until after Phase 2 registration and data submission are closed.

For further information on this topic please contact please contact Meenakshi Datta or Catherine Y Starks at Sidley Austin LLP's Chicago office by telephone (+1 312 853 7000), fax (+1 312 853 7036) or email ([email protected] or [email protected]). Alternatively, contact Hae-Won Min Liao at Sidley Austin LLP's San Francisco office by telephone (+1 415 772 1200), fax (+1 415 772 7400) or email ([email protected]).The Sidley Austin website can be accessed at www.sidley.com.