A clear picture of Big Pharma’s largesse
Doctors will soon have to disclose gifts and payments they receive from pharmaceutical companies.
Doctors will soon have to disclose gifts and payments they receive from pharmaceutical companies. Under the Sunshine Act, a provision of the Affordable Care Act, pharmaceutical and medical-device companies will have to record nearly every financial interaction they have with doctors, whether it’s paying them for research consultation, paying them for speeches, or sending a pizza to their office. That information will then be published on a searchable, public website from September 2014 onward. Many physicians make considerable income from consulting and speaking fees they receive from drug companies; last year alone the biggest drugmaker, Pfizer, paid $173.2 million to health-care professionals.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Today's political cartoons - March 30, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - strawberry fields forever, secret files, and more
By The Week US Published
-
5 hilariously sparse cartoons about further DOGE cuts
Cartoons Artists take on free audits, report cards, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Following the Tea Horse Road in China
The Week Recommends This network of roads and trails served as vital trading routes
By The Week UK Published