Shannon Brownlee has a new piece up over at TIME Ideas. This time, it's a preview of the whole mess of information patients will soon be able to get about their doctors' financial relationships. It doesn't look pretty.
"As of this year, doctors who accept gifts and payments from drug and device makers will see their names on the web, the result of the 2010 Physician Payment Sunshine Act, one of the most controversial provisions in the health care reform law. Companies will be required to report any gift or payment to a doctor or academic researcher over $10, whether it’s in the form of stock options, speaking fees, box seat tickets, knickknacks for the doctor’s office or travel to a medical conference. Doctors will also be required to disclose payments and gifts."
While those payments don't necessarily meet the classic definition of payola (they are not a literal quid pro quo), the evidence showing its effect on prescribing habits is clear: Docs who take money from Pharma use their funders' products more often. Given the already-rampant misuse and ineffective use of prescription drugs and medical devices, that's ample reason to be concerned. When the data come out, check your doctor: you may be surprised.
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