New Database Reveals Ties Between Doctors and Drug Companies

A new database, created by the nonprofit news group ProPublica, documents money received by doctors from drug companies, along with possible conflicts of interest. The site functions as a comprehensive, searchable tool that allows people to see if their doctors have received money from drug manufacturers.

The database brings greater transparency of drug manufacturers in their dealings with doctors and provides the public with a new tool to assess whether doctors are ensuring their patients' best interests.

Financial ties between doctors and drug companies have long been kept behind closed doors, obscuring conflicts of interest. These transactions are not explicitly illegal, and many may be a sincere attempt to promote a drug in the name of innovative medicine. However, as ProPublica notes, such exchanges of money between medical professionals and drug companies (private corporations who do not deal with patients on an individual basis) do “raise ethical issues.” In total, this database contains 17,700 medical providers who have received, in total, close to $289.1 million.

The data was compiled from only those drug companies that listed the information on their website. Therefore, it does not include all manufacturers, nor can every healthcare provider in the United States be found on the site. Just because a doctor isn’t found does not mean he/she has not received money from a drug manufacturer to promote a product. However, neither are health care providers found on the site to be deemed guilty of corruption; manufacturers do hold conferences, seminars, and other events in order to legitimately educate doctors about new drugs that may have beneficial uses outside of what they have been approved for by the FDA. Either way, the "Doctors for Dollars" database is essential for bringing transparency to these transactions, which in turn is essential to the public’s ability to make informed decisions about the drugs they are being prescribed. The only people transparency will harm are those looking to work behind a curtain; in the name of public interest, that curtain should be lifted.   

Many manufacturers, such as Pfizer (the maker of Viagra and Lipitor) and Johnson & Johnson (the company that promotes Concerta for ADHD), are required to disclose this information as a result of legal actions taken against them. However, many companies freely publicize this information for their consumers. ProPublica also provides numerous links to articles and resources for those looking to learn more about drug companies and the legalities of off-label use.

Information regarding the links between drug companies and doctors is becoming increasingly available; ProPublica is one admirable example of a trend that is, hopefully, on the upswing. The new healthcare reform act passed in 2010 requires all drug companies to report data about their payments to healthcare providers (this includes pharmacists and nurses, too) to the federal government by 2013. While we wait on this legislation to take effect, resources such as ProPublica should make doctors think twice before padding their bank accounts with quick money from a drug manufacturer in exchange for a few prescriptions.