To most patients the thought of their physician brings a positive connotation. Where trust and hope at a better life, free of pain and illness or at least where the best symptom management is brought to the table by an educated and highly respected pillar of the community. Is that the case? Do our physicians care for and about us or are they driven by the favored and highly lucrative drug of the month? Are kick-backs, luncheons, gifts, and hard cash the deciding factor of what is the best treatment for what ails us?

Recent news reports point to just that - the pharmaceutical business is highly lucrative and everyone is joining in to get a piece of that pie. But to what extent and who pays the biggest price? An investigative look will shed some light on why this ghastly practice is happening and who it really harms.

Doctors Paid by Drug Companies?

In Christian Nordqvist's article dated 2010-10-19 titled, "Over 17,000 US Doctors Paid By Drug Companies to Spread Their Message", he depicts a disturbing portrait of medical professionals that accept large monetary gifts to boost pharmaceutical exposure and sales. According to Nordqvist (2010), ProPublica, a not-for-profit independent newsroom in conjunction with The Chicago Tribune, PBS Nightly Business Report, Consumer Reports, and the Boston Globe participated in a joint investigation that identified 17,000 health care professionals who have been accepting large sums of money from pharmaceutical companies since 2009.