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Open data on industry payments to healthcare providers reveal potential hidden costs to the public

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Listed:
  • Jorge Mejia

    (Indiana University)

  • Amanda Mejia

    (Department of Statistics, Indiana University
    Indiana University)

  • Franco Pestilli

    (Indiana University
    Indiana University
    Indiana University)

Abstract

Healthcare industry players make payments to medical providers for non-research expenses. While these payments may pose conflicts of interest, their relationship with overall healthcare costs remains largely unknown. In this study, we linked Open Payments data on providers’ industry payments with Medicare data on healthcare costs. We investigated 374,766 providers’ industry payments and healthcare costs. We demonstrate that providers receiving higher amounts of industry payments tend to bill higher drug and medical costs. Specifically, we find that a 10% increase in industry payments is associated with 1.3% higher medical and 1.8% higher drug costs. For a typical provider, for example, a 10% or $25 increase in annual industry payments would be associated with approximately $1,100 higher medical costs and $100 higher drug costs. Furthermore, the association between payments and healthcare costs varies markedly across states and correlates with political leaning, being stronger in more conservative states.

Suggested Citation

  • Jorge Mejia & Amanda Mejia & Franco Pestilli, 2019. "Open data on industry payments to healthcare providers reveal potential hidden costs to the public," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-8, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:10:y:2019:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-019-12317-z
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12317-z
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    Cited by:

    1. Ansari, Bahareh, 2021. "Industry payments and physicians prescriptions: Effect of a payment restriction policy," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 278(C).
    2. Eszter Saghy & Shai Mulinari & Piotr Ozieranski, 2021. "Drug company payments to General Practices in England: Cross-sectional and social network analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(12), pages 1-16, December.
    3. Mulinari, Shai & Martinon, Luc & Jachiet, Pierre-Alain & Ozieranski, Piotr, 2021. "Pharmaceutical industry self-regulation and non-transparency: country and company level analysis of payments to healthcare professionals in seven European countries," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 125(7), pages 915-922.

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