We are in a new era of transparency in the relationship between physicians, hospitals, and drug and device manufacturers. The Physician Payment Sunshine Act of August 1st, 2014 requires reporting all financial compensation given to physicians and hospitals by industry to an online database. The database is publicly accessible and includes the dollar amounts received as well as the reason for the payment, ranging from food to medical education to research.

In our view, public access to this information is long overdue. The Colorado Medical Society reports that over 90% of physicians have some type of business relationship with industry manufacturers and 80% of physicians receive food or beverages – “drug company lunches” – in their offices. These seemingly innocent lunches are justified as medical education by including a brief promotional talk by a company salesperson about a particular drug. How much can a lunch cost? In 2011 pharmaceutical companies spent as much as $15.7 billion (that’s billion with a “B”) on these types of face-to-face sales.

One of our guiding principles is that we do not accept any industry lunches, handouts, or gifts. We buy our own lunches, pens, pads of paper, and calendars, because we have always believed that the cost of these gifts and lunches is passed directly onto the patient in the form of higher costs at the pharmacy. We also feel that it is virtually impossible to avoid being influenced to some degree by people bearing gifts. It is vital that we make our decisions about medications and your health based on what is best for you, free from any conflict of interest. So we say let the Sunshine Act shine on!

The information posted on this blog and website are for general information only and should never be relied on as specific medical advice for an individual reader.  No financial relationship exists between us and any recommended products or persons mentioned. All material contained here is the property of the Sheldon Sowell Center for Health, PC, and cannot be copied, reprinted, or linked to without our express permission.