Doctors are making money – LOTS of money for prescribing drugs to you and your family. Chemotherapy kickbacks are the worst. How much are they getting? Check out the detailed infographic below for the shocking statistics. This revenue windfall absolutely has the potential to sway prescribing decisions. Any doctor who claims otherwise is in La La Land.
The practice of drug kickbacks to doctors is a big reason for the the ever increasing prices of drugs and the huge problem of drug affordability.
Not only is this practice of drug kickbacks extremely unethical, it is a danger to your health and the health of your loved ones, particularly if they are in the hospital and vulnerable to exploitation due to serious illness.
Laws that will took effect in 2013 required all pharmaceutical companies to disclose their payments to doctors. This is not enough, however, as doctors asked about their drug kickbacks usually report biased information that their patients readily believe.
Protect yourself! Â Learn the facts and check the national database that lists doctors who are receiving drug kickbacks.
Via: MedicalBillingandCoding.org
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Years ago I noticed that my mother’s doctor in Maysville, Kentucky was prescribing the most expensive drugs possible when one a lot cheaper would do the same thing. She is diabetic and also the taxpayers have to pay her doctor and drug bills through Medicare. I told her the doctor was getting paid by the drug company in vacations or something. At the time I had no way to prove it. It was just a feeling. Now I do. He is the only Endocrinologist in town and got over $93,000 in kickbacks since 2009. That is more than the amount we live on together. I think that is disgusting. I better stop before I say something that will get me in trouble. I’ve always known he was a crook.
It isn’t really the doctors who are in “La La Land” — it’s the patients. They ask for the drugs. Of course, the doctors are usually loathe to say no, but still, the patients expect to leave with a prescription in hand. Yes they do. No one moreso than young Mom’s with sick kids (unless they’re wise to the system). Medicine is big business, it’s certainly not health care. This was discovered to be a fact back in the 1980’s when Reagan was our give-away president.
How do I enter the give aways. Can you direct me on this site?
Thank you
Marie
I only go to the doctor when I’m pregnant…and they aren’t on the list. I’m actually very happy with my OB doctors (I go to an office where you see all 6 doctors) and trust them. I still check though… 🙂
A more natural doctor who practiced in a town near mine simply prescribed vitamins, at best. She was getting known for her “natural” ways. But good things don’t last long. You guessed it, the hospital let her go because she simply wasn’t bringing in enough money for the hospital! She probably spent much needed time counseling patients on the habits of nutrition and not just writing a prescription and moving on to the next patient. It’s not just the doctors; it’s the hospitals too!
Investigating this is like investigating how many drivers are speeding on the NASCAR circuit… what’s the point?
I had a doctor try to prescribe me medication for a condition that I didn’t have symptoms for. When I did more research and pointed this out to me, his argument was that he knew better because he was the doctor, and what pharmacy should he send the prescription to?
umm…no. Turns out I didn’t have that condition after all, and I never went back to that doctor. I am convinced that my original reason for going to him was justified, but since changing my diet and learning more about REAL healthy eating, I no longer have those issues (hypothyroidism). So good riddance to him.
I used to work in a family practice clinic that was supposedly a more eclectic, natural living type clinic that had CNMs to deliver babies, an acupuncturist, a physical therapy unit with a chiropractor and LMTs. Most of my day was spent handling prescriptions. Every Tuesday and Thursday drug reps were allowed to cater lunch so they could trap people in the lunch room and drone on about their products. It wasn’t just the doctors, the assistants and receptionists got it too – hoping maybe we would make some suggestions to patients? Then they would make follow-up visits, bringing chocolates, fruit baskets, flowers, gift cards, cutesy knickknacks, and rumor was, expensive dinners after hours. How many reps allowed in the clinic on one day was limited and the sign-up sheet was booked for months. Shouldn’t have come as a surprise when the clinic owner started up an extremely expensive weight loss program using (soy based) meal replacements and started handing out phentermine like it was candy. Anyone who disagreed with anything that went on in that office was fired. Really glad I was among the large number of people who did 🙂
My mom is a retired OB/GYN RN for a private practice. Every week the drug reps would come in with vast spreads of gourmet foods and goodies to butter up the office staff and docs in the practice. Docs rec’d add’l perks in the form of couple getaways, country club memberships, up to complete family vacations (and we wonder why/how docs are away from the office so often), based upon how many drugs they bought. More drugs = bigger perks. This is the absolute truth, and the con perpetuates today.
(witness Africa …..)