REVENUE RECOGNITION

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]

REVENUE RECOGNITION

REVENUE RECOGNITION

The Company’s revenues are primarily generated from product sales, principally in the therapeutic areas of eye-health, GI and dermatology, that consist of: (i) branded pharmaceuticals, (ii) generic and branded generic pharmaceuticals, (iii) OTC products and (iv) medical devices (contact lenses, intraocular lenses, ophthalmic surgical equipment and aesthetics devices). Other revenues include alliance and service revenue from the licensing and co-promotion of products and contract service revenue primarily in the areas of dermatology and topical medication. Contract service revenue is derived primarily from contract manufacturing for third parties and is not material. See Note 19, "SEGMENT INFORMATION" for the disaggregation of revenue which depicts how the nature, amount, timing and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows are affected by the economic factors of each category of customer contracts.

Product Sales Provisions

As is customary in the pharmaceutical industry, gross product sales are subject to a variety of deductions in arriving at reported net product sales.  The transaction price for product sales is typically adjusted for variable consideration, which may be in the form of cash discounts, allowances, returns, rebates, chargebacks and distribution fees paid to customers. Provisions for variable consideration are established to reflect the Company’s best estimates of the amount of consideration to which it is entitled based on the terms of the contract. The amount of variable consideration included in the transaction price may be constrained, and is included in the net sales price only to the extent that it is probable that a significant reversal in the amount of the cumulative revenue recognized will not occur in a future period.

Provisions for these deductions are recorded concurrently with the recognition of gross product sales revenue and include cash discounts and allowances, chargebacks, and distribution fees, which are paid to direct customers, as well as rebates and returns, which can be paid to direct and indirect customers. Returns provision balances and volume discounts to direct customers are included in Accrued and other current liabilities. All other provisions related to direct customers are included in Trade receivables, net, while provision balances related to indirect customers are included in Accrued and other current liabilities.

The Company continually monitors its variable consideration provisions and evaluates the estimates used as additional information becomes available. Adjustments will be made to these provisions periodically to reflect new facts and circumstances that may indicate that historical experience may not be indicative of current and/or future results. The Company is required to make subjective judgments based primarily on its evaluation of current market conditions and trade inventory levels related to the Company's products. These judgments include the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on, among other things, unemployment and related changes in customer health insurance levels, customer behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic and government stimulus bills that focus on ensuring availability and access to lifesaving drugs during a public health crisis. This evaluation may result in an increase or decrease in the experience rate that is applied to current and future sales, or require an adjustment related to past sales, or both. If the trend in actual amounts of variable consideration varies from the Company’s prior estimates, the Company adjusts these estimates when such trend is believed to be sustainable. At that time, the Company would record the necessary adjustments which would affect net product revenue and earnings reported in the current period.

Over the last several years, the Company increased its focus on maximizing operational efficiencies and continues to take actions to reduce product returns, including but not limited to: (i) monitoring and reducing customer inventory levels, (ii) instituting disciplined pricing policies and (iii) improving contracting. These actions have had the effect of improving sales return experience, primarily related to branded and generic products. Sales return provisions for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019 were $71 million and $50 million, respectively, and includes reductions in variable consideration for sales return provisions related to past sales of approximately $38 million and $80 million for the three months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

The following tables present the activity and ending balances of the Company’s variable consideration provisions for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019.

	Nine Months Ended September 30, 2020
(in millions)	Discounts and Allowances		Returns		Rebates		Chargebacks		Distribution Fees		Total
Reserve balances, January 1, 2020	$	182	$	691	$	927	$	168	$	82	$	2,050
Current period provisions	457		71		1,587		1,433		149		3,697
Payments and credits	(454)		(185)		(1,605)		(1,451)		(150)		(3,845)
Reserve balances, September 30, 2020	$	185	$	577	$	909	$	150	$	81	$	1,902

Included in Rebates in the table above are cooperative advertising credits due to customers of approximately $33 million and $29 million as of September 30, 2020 and January 1, 2020, respectively, which are reflected as a reduction of Trade receivables, net in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Included as a reduction of Distribution Fees in the table above are price appreciation credits of approximately $4 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2020.

	Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019
(in millions)	Discounts and Allowances		Returns		Rebates		Chargebacks		Distribution Fees		Total
Reserve balances, January 1, 2019	$	175	$	813	$	1,024	$	209	$	163	$	2,384
Acquisition of Synergy	—		3		12		—		1		16
Current period provisions	585		50		1,650		1,425		150		3,860
Payments and credits	(583)		(187)		(1,673)		(1,480)		(181)		(4,104)
Reserve balances, September 30, 2019	$	177	$	679	$	1,013	$	154	$	133	$	2,156

Included in Rebates in the table above are cooperative advertising credits due to customers of approximately $26 million and $26 million as of September 30, 2019 and January 1, 2019, respectively. There were no price appreciation credits during the nine months ended September 30, 2019.

Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities

There are no contract assets for any period presented. Contract liabilities consist of deferred revenue, the balance of which is not material to any period presented.

Allowance for Credit Losses

An allowance is maintained for potential credit losses. The Company estimates the current expected credit loss on its receivables based on various factors, including historical credit loss experience, customer credit worthiness, value of collaterals (if any), and any relevant current and reasonably supportable future economic factors.  Additionally, the Company generally estimates the expected credit loss on a pool basis when customers are deemed to have similar risk characteristics. Trade receivable balances are written off against the allowance when it is deemed probable that the trade receivable will not be collected. Trade receivables, net are stated net of certain sales provisions and the allowance for credit losses. The activity in the allowance for credit losses for trade receivables for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 is as follows.

(in millions)
Balance, December 31, 2019	$	48
Retrospective effect of application of new accounting standard	1
Provision	7
Write-offs	(3)
Recoveries	1
Foreign exchange and other	(1)
Balance, September 30, 2020	$	53