As required by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) and in accordance with the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) policy, all individuals in a position to control or influence the content of an activity must disclose all financial relationships with any ineligible company that have occurred within the past 24 months. The ACCME defines an “ineligible company” as companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing health care products used by or on patients. Examples of such organizations include:

•    Advertising, marketing, or communication firms whose clients are ineligible companies
•    Bio-medical startups that have begun a governmental regulatory approval process
•    Compounding pharmacies that manufacture proprietary compounds
•    Device manufacturers or distributors
•    Diagnostic labs that sell proprietary products
•    Growers, distributors, manufacturers or sellers of medical foods and dietary supplements
•    Manufacturers of health-related wearable products
•    Pharmaceutical companies or distributors
•    Pharmacy benefit managers
•    Reagent manufacturers or sellers

The ACCME does not consider providers of clinical service directly to patients to be commercial interests. For more information, visit www.accme.org. All identified relevant relationships must be mitigated and the educational content thoroughly vetted for fair balance, scientific objectivity, and appropriateness of patient care recommendations. It is required that disclosure of or absence of relevant financial relationships be provided to the learners prior to the start of the activity.

Learners must also be informed when off-label, experimental/investigational uses of drugs or devices are discussed in an educational activity or included in related materials.

Disclosure in no way implies that the information presented is biased or of lesser quality. It is incumbent upon course participants to be aware of these factors in interpreting the program contents and evaluating recommendations. Moreover, expressed views do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the ACAAI. All relevant financial relationships have been mitigated.

Anil Nanda, MD, FACAAI, has nothing to disclose.
Joanna Zeiger, MS, PhD, has nothing to disclose.
Hannalore Brucker, MD, FACP, has nothing to disclose.