In an industry first, Eli Lilly and Co. says it will begin disclosing how much money it paid to individual doctors nationally for advice, speeches and other services.
The drug company's move comes as members of Congress push a disclosure bill in an effort to prevent such payments from improperly influencing medical decisions.
Beginning next year, Eli Lilly will disclose payments of more than $500 to doctors for their roles as advisers and for speaking at educational seminars. In later years, the company will expand the types of payments disclosed to include such things as travel, entertainment and gifts.
Some have voiced concerns that doctors are influenced by these payments in their treatment decisions and that this in turn can drive up medical bills. Although most physicians believe that free lunches or trips have no effect on their medical judgment, research has shown that these type of payments can affect how people act.
"The ethical handwriting is on the wall. Disclosure is coming. States are pushing for it, and once a few states do, it's hard to imagine the federal government won't line up behind," said Arthur Caplan, director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. "I think that's a good thing because we have a great deal of empirical evidence that gift giving can influence behavior in terms of prescriptions, publishing positive findings but suppressing negative findings, and generating enthusiasm for new drugs."
Eli Lilly was also the first drug company to publicly report its educational grants for medical conferences. Dr. John Lechleiter, president and CEO of the company, said that made good business sense for the drug industry.
"We've learned that letting people see for themselves what we're doing is a good way to restore trust," Lechleiter said.
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