The fact that physicians and other providers have relationships with the pharmaceutical industry is a long-standing source of conflict for some. On May 27, 2020, BMJ published two pieces on the topic: an editorial focused on financial relations between leaders of United States medical societies and industry and a research piece on the same topic.
Cross-Sectional Study
The cross-sectional study involved reviewing the United States Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality database and the Open Payments database to find the proportion of leaders with financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry during their year of leadership, during the four years prior to and the year after their board membership, and the nature and extent of those relationships.
The researchers planned to investigate changes in the extent or nature of financial ties over the course of the study period but did not wind up doing so “given the short three year window.”
According to the study, 72% of association leaders had financial ties to industry, with the number slightly elevated for association leaders who were also doctors (80%). The study concluded that “financial relationships between the leaders of influential US professional medical associations and industry are extensive, although with variation among the associations.” Then, of course, the authors conclude by saying “the quantum of payments raises questions about independence and integrity, adding weight to calls for policy reform.”
The study also found that the amounts of the general payments and research payments, as well as the median total amounts linked to individual leaders, varied widely from organization to organization.
Analysis
The authors of the study did note that it comes with “important limitations,” including that they solely relied on the Open Payments database to support their findings. The authors also indicated that “major research questions remain unanswered” as to the impact financial relationships have on patient care and other topics.
It’s interesting that this study came out as the COVID-19 pandemic was starting to wind down in the United States. If we have learned anything grappling with COVID-19, we should want associations to have close ties to industry so that cures and research can be done most efficiently and save lives. As we have seen, the potential cures for COVID-19 are currently coming out of industry companies, not academia. COVID-19 has made apparent our complete dependence on one another to solve health problems. BMJ needs to put their bias to bed and move on to important issues of the day that would encourage collaboration.