PO-15.1 EFFECTIVE DATE:  SEPTEMBER 2016 REVIEW DATE: EVERY TWO YEARS NEW YORK STATE ACADEMY OF NUTRITION AND DIETETICS POLICY ON CORPORATE SPONSORSHIPS

The New York State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics will accept corporate sponsorships only from external organizations that uphold the NYSAND Strategic Plan upon approval by the Board of Directors.

NYSAND will not accept corporate sponsorship from companies whose products and/or services are viewed to negatively impact the public’s health and/or limit the public’s trust in registered dietitians/nutritionists. 

The policy applies to all NYSAND events, meetings, public relations activities and publications.

Guidelines to Prevent Conflicts of Interest and to Promote Transparency

• The NYSAND BOD will provide final approval for all forms of sponsorships.  This approval will be given after a corporate sponsorship subcommittee has reviewed all potential sponsorships and presented their recommendations to the BOD.
• NYSAND will be 100% transparent for all Corporate Sponsorships.
• At year’s end, NYSAND will release a corporate sponsorship report of all sponsored activities and/or publications to its members. A copy of this report will be placed on the NYSAND website for members and the public to access. The report will include:
  • Names of all Corporate Sponsors.
  • Service the sponsor provided (financial, space, product, etc.).
  • The signed contract between the corporate sponsor and NYSAND.
  • The NYSAND website will display Corporate Sponsorship requirements, activities and contracts.
  • All speakers at an NYSAND educational event will provide full discloser on the first slide of a presentation. 
  • NYSAND will ensure that there is a clearly evident separation between NYSAND educational sessions and corporate sponsored sessions.
  • Corporate Sponsorships will be clearly advertised on all promotional materials.
  • If a Corporate Sponsor has been granted access to the membership and allowed to have a link to their website for a period of time determined by their contract, that link will be evident to both the membership and the public.

Determining Sponsorship Propriety:

Acceptable Sponsorship Opportunities

• Financial support.
• Donated meeting space, refreshments, folders, pens, and other meeting supplies
• Product samples, also known as “goody bag” items, distributed with the intention of consumption after an event are considered an indirect form of sponsorship. 
• Waived (i.e. sponsored) honorariums.

The extent to which potential sponsors engage in the following undesirable activities will be evaluated prior to presentation to the BOD for approval.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Provision of services or sale of goods that undermine the health of Americans.
• Participation in lobbying initiatives that curtail public health laws or mandates.
• Utilization of marketing strategies to children not in compliance with the Federal Trade Commission Interagency Work Groups proposed guidelines.
• Provision of educational materials targeted to dietitians that are not evidenced based or do not present a balanced, unbiased approach to nutrition and wellness. 

Guidelines for Corporate Sponsorship of Continuing Education Events

• Corporate Sponsors may support an event in total and will be recognized for the same.
• The content of events is decided by member needs and interest, not by the needs and/or interest of potential Corporate Sponsors.
• Corporate Sponsors may offer waived (i.e. sponsored) honorariums with caution to prevent commercialized educational events and/or other conflicts of interest.
• Corporate Sponsors may convene their own sessions at an NYSAND meeting
  • Session will be clearly separated by time and place (e.g. meal time meeting at a site apart from the general meeting session).
  • Session will be listed separately from the general meeting sessions.

Assignment of Responsibility: AME Chairs 

Effective:       September 2016                                          Reviewed/Revised