Financial Ties Between Emergency Physicians and Industry: Insights From Open Payments Data

• Published in: Annals of emergency medicine 2016-08, Vol.68 (2), p.153-158.e4
• Main Authors: Fleischman, William, MD, Ross, Joseph S., MD, MHS, Melnick, Edward R., MD, MHS, Newman, David H., MD, Venkatesh, Arjun K., MD, MBA
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (U.S.); Conflict of Interest; Disclosure - legislation & jurisprudence; Drug Industry - economics; Economics, Medical; Emergency; Emergency Medicine - economics; Gift Giving; Industry - economics; Medicine; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Physicians - economics; Reimbursement Mechanisms; United States
• ISSN: 0196-0644; 1097-6760
• DOI: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2016.01.014

Study objective The Open Payments program requires reporting of payments by medical product companies to teaching hospitals and licensed physicians. We seek to describe nonresearch, nonroyalty payments made to emergency physicians in the United States. Methods We performed a descriptive analysis of the most recent Open Payments data released to the public by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services covering the 2014 calendar year. We calculated the median payment, the total pay per physician, the types of payments, and the drugs and devices associated with payments to emergency physicians. For context, we also calculated total pay per physician and the percentage of active physicians receiving payments for all specialties. Results There were 46,405 payments totaling $10,693,310 to 12,883 emergency physicians, representing 30% of active emergency physicians in 2013. The percentage of active physicians within a specialty who received a payment ranged from 14.6% in preventive medicine to 91% in orthopedic surgery. The median payment and median total pay to emergency physicians were $16 (interquartile range $12 to $68) and $44 (interquartile range $16 to $123), respectively. The majority of payments (83%) were less than $100. Food and beverage (86%) was the most frequent type of payment. The most common products associated with payments to emergency physicians were rivaroxaban, apixaban, ticagrelor, ceftaroline, canagliflozin, dabigatran, and alteplase. Conclusion Nearly a third of emergency physicians received nonresearch, nonroyalty payments from industry in 2014. Most payments were of small monetary value and for activities related to the marketing of antithrombotic drugs.