# Hypothetical no-pay-to-rank and clinical-autonomy policy

**Educational draft only.** This is not a current DenQAI vendor program, endorsement policy for paid listings, clinical protocol, or legal opinion.

## No pay to rank

Vendor payment, sponsorship, rebate, referral benefit, advertising, data value, financing, or other commercial consideration cannot secretly change a comparison result, preferred position, evidence label, or complaint outcome.

Any commercial relationship must be:

- disclosed in plain language;
- linked to the affected vendor and category;
- separated from evaluation where practical;
- reviewed under a written conflict process;
- auditable by the governing body;
- correctable when incomplete or wrong.

Sponsored education must be labeled and must not be presented as independent comparative evidence.

## Clinical autonomy

The treating clinician retains authority over diagnosis, treatment planning, product and material selection, laboratory choice, referrals, appointment time, patient communication, and clinically necessary exceptions within law and professional duties.

A purchasing preference cannot:

- force a product or substitute for a nonclinical reason;
- punish a documented clinical exception through unrelated pricing or membership rights;
- limit access to safety, recall, complaint, warranty, or adverse-event information;
- direct diagnosis or treatment volume;
- hide a shortage, recall, defect, or source concern.

## Evidence and correction

Vendor claims, written terms, official records, owner experience, and independently reviewed performance remain separately labeled. A complaint or correction process identifies the record, owner, evidence, limitation, decision, date, and appeal or recheck path.

## Pause condition

Pause vendor selection or program launch when commercial influence, clinical authority, source evidence, safety review, complaint ownership, correction, or member oversight cannot be documented and tested.