Educational Items

Educational items are tools designed to help healthcare professionals (HCPs) enhance their own education or that of their patients. Sales colleagues may occasionally provide Bausch + Lomb-approved educational items to HCPs where appropriate and in compliance with federal, state, and local laws, ensuring all distributions are properly documented. These items should be relevant to an HCP’s professional responsibilities and ultimately support patient care, patient education, or medical practice.

Only Bausch + Lomb-approved Patient Education Resources (PERs) and Healthcare Practitioner Resources (HPRs) may be provided as educational items.

Some states have laws that restrict or prohibit offering items of value to HCPs, state government employees, or members of State Formulary Committees. Colleagues working in those states must adhere to these specific laws and follow guidance from their managers. For more details on state regulations, please refer to the Summary of Healthcare Laws guidance.

Educational items are tools designed to help healthcare professionals (HCPs) enhance their own education or that of their patients. Sales colleagues may occasionally provide Bausch + Lomb-approved educational items to HCPs where appropriate and in compliance with federal, state, and local laws, ensuring all distributions are properly documented. These items should be relevant to an HCP’s professional responsibilities and ultimately support patient care, patient education, or medical practice.

Only Bausch + Lomb-approved Patient Education Resources (PERs) and Healthcare Practitioner Resources (HPRs) may be provided as educational items.

Some states have laws that restrict or prohibit offering items of value to HCPs, state government employees, or members of State Formulary Committees. Colleagues working in those states must adhere to these specific laws and follow guidance from their managers. For more details on state regulations, please refer to the Summary of Healthcare Laws guidance.

Quick Tips:

Bausch + Lomb may provide Bausch + Lomb-approved, modest items of value designed primarily for the education of patients or HCPs.
An Educational Item may never be provided in order to induce or to reward an HCP for prescribing, purchasing or recommending Bausch + Lomb products.
Always ensure that all relevant state laws and restrictions on provision of Educational Items are followed.

Reprints

The FDA provides guidelines for sharing medical journal articles and scientific reference publications about unapproved uses of approved drugs with healthcare professionals (HCPs) and healthcare entities, but only when strict criteria are met. Such materials are not considered promotional and must not be discussed with HCPs.Only reprints approved for promotional use with HCPs may be discussed. As with all materials shared with customers, these reprints must undergo review and approval through Bausch + Lomb’s promotional review process before dissemination.

To ensure proper distribution of pre-approved reprints, colleagues should:

Disseminate only approved reprints following instructions provided via Bausch + Lomb’s approved processes and systems, including providing any required accompanying materials (such as reprint carriers, cover letters, prescribing information) when appropriate.
Adhere strictly to talking points and messages approved by Bausch + Lomb’s promotional review process.
Report internally the provision of reprints as Educational Items, which hold value under federal and state transparency laws such as the U.S. Physician Payments Sunshine Act.
Sales colleagues must not use reprints to encourage HCPs to ask Off-Label questions or initiate Off-Label discussions.

All peer-reviewed scientific articles (“reprints”), intended for distribution or promotion by Bausch + Lomb representatives should be approved in accordance with Bausch + Lomb standards prior to distribution or promotion to HCPs.

All Healthcare Professional Resources (HPRs) should be corporate-supplied. Field- purchased HPRs are not permitted.

The FDA provides guidelines for sharing medical journal articles and scientific reference publications about unapproved uses of approved drugs with healthcare professionals (HCPs) and healthcare entities, but only when strict criteria are met. Such materials are not considered promotional and must not be discussed with HCPs.Only reprints approved for promotional use with HCPs may be discussed. As with all materials shared with customers, these reprints must undergo review and approval through Bausch + Lomb’s promotional review process before dissemination.

To ensure proper distribution of pre-approved reprints, colleagues should:

Disseminate only approved reprints following instructions provided via Bausch + Lomb’s approved processes and systems, including providing any required accompanying materials (such as reprint carriers, cover letters, prescribing information) when appropriate.
Adhere strictly to talking points and messages approved by Bausch + Lomb’s promotional review process.
Report internally the provision of reprints as Educational Items, which hold value under federal and state transparency laws such as the U.S. Physician Payments Sunshine Act.
Sales colleagues must not use reprints to encourage HCPs to ask Off-Label questions or initiate Off-Label discussions.

All peer-reviewed scientific articles (“reprints”), intended for distribution or promotion by Bausch + Lomb representatives should be approved in accordance with Bausch + Lomb standards prior to distribution or promotion to HCPs.

All Healthcare Professional Resources (HPRs) should be corporate-supplied. Field- purchased HPRs are not permitted.

Healthcare Professional Resources

Healthcare Professional Resources (HPRs) are items provided to support patient diagnosis, treatment, and care, and typically stay in the physician’s office for use by the healthcare professional and staff. These items must be tracked for business and compliance purposes, including adherence to federal and state disclosure requirements, and cannot exceed a retail value of $100. Examples of HPRs include textbooks, anatomical models, assessment tools, and corporate-approved software programs or apps.
Corporate marketing colleagues are responsible for selecting and procuring all HPRs following approval through the appropriate system. HPRs are distributed only after the healthcare professional has signed for the item.

Patient Education Resources

Patient Education Resources (PERs) are designed to inform patients and caregivers, helping them better understand their condition and treatment plans. PERs may only be provided in reasonable quantities to appropriately targeted physicians or healthcare institutions and must never be offered as a quid pro quo, reward, or inducement to prescribe, purchase, or recommend a product. Examples of PERs include brochures, patient guides, and assessment tools. All PERs must be approved for distribution by Bausch + Lomb. Depending on the type of item, PERs may be subject to tracking for business and compliance purposes, including adherence to applicable federal and state disclosure requirements.

Allowable Educational Items

To be considered an allowable Educational Item, the item must meet the following criteria:

Be part of a centrally approved Bausch + Lomb program.
Have a retail value of less than $100 (if multiple items are provided, their combined value should not exceed $100).
Be educational in nature, such as anatomical models or medically relevant textbooks.
Be provided only occasionally (no more than twice per year, per healthcare professional).
Offer no benefit to the healthcare professional beyond their professional responsibilities.
Be tracked and disclosed in accordance with applicable transparency requirements.

Field-purchased Patient Education Resources (PERs) are not permissible.