As terms of their settlement with the FDA over kickbacks to doctors, five hip implant device makers have posted payment amounts to consultant docs on their company websites, according to the Wall Street Journal Health Blog.
I went to the websites (links are in the blog article), and was shocked to see that some docs were earning upwards of a million dollars a year as consultants to the firms who manufacture the implants they use in their hip surgeries. In addition, it’s clear that academic medical centers are also reaping the rewards of their relationships with this industry.
I encourage you to head on over and look at the lists yourself. The experience of actually seeing these names and dollar amounts is quite different than just reading about it.
I don’t think there is anything inherently wrong with physicians having relationships with industry. But those relationships should be disclosed. Moreover, disclosing actual dollar amounts is an objective measure of the potential influence those relationships may have on health care decisions.
I for one would like to see this same kind of transparency in all physician- industry relationships.
Wow! Did anyone ever offer you a “kickback” for using certain diaphrams, etc? I never got any offers for use of implants, etc. [I think I am naive when it comes to some of this.]
And all I get usually are really disappointing copies of composition textbooks. (It’s hard to imagine less fun material to read than a typical composition text.) I’m clearly in the wrong line of work. 🙁