In 2015, American Doctors Received $2.4 Billion in Payments From the Biomedical Industry

‘Almost half of America’s licensed doctors received some kind of payment from drug and medical-device companies in 2015, totaling $2.4 billion worth in gifts and grants, according to a new analysis.
Research shows that even small gifts can alter doctors’ treatment decisions to favor a company’s products. In one recent study, doctors who received relatively modest free meals from a pharmaceutical representative were more likely to prescribe the representative’s drug. In another, newer study, doctors who worked in university medical centers that prohibited pharmaceutical representatives from bringing in free food and drug samples were less likely to prescribe the advertised drugs than doctors who worked in medical centers with no such bans.’
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