Big Pharma Paid Over $1 Billion to Influence Medical Research from 2020-2022 in BMJ, JAMA, The Lancet, The New England Journal of Medicine
Big Pharma Paid Over $1 Billion to Influence Medical Research from 2020-2022 in BMJ, JAMA, The Lancet, The New England Journal of Medicine
58.9% of journal reviewers received pharmaceutical industry payments, revealing massive conflict of interest.
A new research letter published Thursday in the peer-reviewed publisher JAMA reveals that reviewers for major medical journals have received $1.06 billion in pharmaceutical industry payments, highlighting significant conflicts of interest within medical research.
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The letter begins by emphasizing the existence of “conflicts of interest of journal editors and authors” and that “the traditionally opaque nature of peer review has hindered their evaluation among peer reviewers, despite their crucial role in academic publishing.”
The authors point out that while most journals have established conflict of interest policies for authors, “fewer extend these policies to peer reviewers.”
They write that “reviewer conflict of interest disclosures are rare” and “leading medical journals may have industry ties due to their academic expertise.”
The U.S., Canadian, and Japanese researchers sought to characterize payments by drug and medical device manufacturers to U.S. peer reviewers of major medical journals.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, these journals experienced an unprecedented surge in citations, particularly for their COVID-related publications.
The new letter raises questions about these journals being relied upon for accurate and unbiased information, especially during a pandemic.
The authors conclude by calling for “additional research and transparency regarding industry payments in the peer review process.”
Top Medical Journals
The letter identified peer reviewers for The British Medical Journal (BMJ), Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), The Lancet, and The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) using each journal’s 2022 reviewer list.
“These journals were selected for their high impact factor and reputation as leading publications of original general medical research,” the letter reads.
After extracting general and research payments to the identified peer reviewers between 2020 and 2022 from the Open Payments database, the researchers captured payments from drug and medical device manufacturers to US-licensed physicians.
Nearly 60% of Reviewers Took $1.06 Billion from Pharma Industry Over 3 Years
A total of 1,962 unique reviewers were identified, with 145 (7.4%) reviewing for more than one journal.
Between 2020 and 2022, 1,155 reviewers (58.9%) received pharmaceutical industry payments: 54.0% accepted general payments, and 31.8% received payments for research.
Between 2020 and 2022, reviewers received an astounding $1.06 billion in industry payments, with 94.0% ($1 billion) going to individuals or institutions and a median research payment of $153,173.
“Reviewers received $1.06 billion in industry payments between 2020 and 2022, including $1.00 billion (94.0%) to individuals or their institutions and $64.18 million (6.0%) in general payments,” the letter reads.
“Consulting fees and speaking compensation unrelated to continuing medical education programs accounted for $34.31 million and $11.80 million, respectively. Over the 3 years, the median general payment was $7614 (IQR, $495-$43 069) and the median research payment was $153 173 (IQR, $29 307-$835 637) among reviewers receiving such payments.”
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