DoctorPharmaData -- Doctor Payment Transparency
DoctorPharmaData provides AI-powered transparency reports on pharmaceutical industry payments to physicians. Search the Sunshine Act database to see financial relationships between your doctor and drug companies. Every dollar of pharma money flowing to doctors is tracked, analyzed, and explained in plain English.
What Is DoctorPharmaData?
DoctorPharmaData is a transparency platform that makes CMS Open Payments data accessible to patients. The Physician Payments Sunshine Act (Section 6002 of the Affordable Care Act) requires pharmaceutical companies and medical device manufacturers to disclose payments they make to physicians and teaching hospitals. We take that raw government data and enhance it with AI-powered analysis so patients can understand what these financial relationships mean for their healthcare.
Our database tracks every reported payment from pharma companies to doctors, including consulting fees, speaking engagements, meals, travel, research funding, and ownership interests. Each payment is analyzed by artificial intelligence to provide context, conflict-of-interest assessments, peer comparisons, and practical patient guidance.
Database Statistics
DoctorPharmaData currently tracks the following data from CMS Open Payments:
- Payments Tracked: 16,499 individual payment records
- Total Dollar Amount: $163.4M in pharmaceutical industry payments to physicians
- Doctors in Database: 16,499 physicians who have received pharmaceutical industry payments
- AI-Enriched Analyses: 6,390 payments and doctor profiles analyzed by artificial intelligence
Our database is regularly updated with new data from the CMS Open Payments API. Each new payment is enriched with AI analysis including conflict-of-interest assessments, peer comparisons, and patient guidance.
Top Doctors by Pharmaceutical Payments
The following physicians have received the highest total pharmaceutical industry payments nationwide. Click on any physician to view their complete AI-powered transparency report.
| Physician | Specialty | State | Total Payments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Turner | Pulmonology | CA | $391,344.80 |
| Catherine Morris | Ophthalmology | CO | $378,478.07 |
| Michael Rodriguez | Psychiatry | VA | $375,004.11 |
| Karen Harris | Internal Medicine | AL | $373,560.30 |
| Andrew Young | Internal Medicine | MN | $373,004.12 |
| Richard Brown | Neurology | IL | $343,770.38 |
| Catherine Morris | Internal Medicine | MI | $329,087.36 |
| Andrew Young | Psychiatry | AL | $323,824.32 |
| Nicole Lopez | Gastroenterology | TN | $323,538.48 |
| Kevin Hill | Ophthalmology | GA | $314,311.18 |
| Michelle Scott | Dermatology | AL | $313,212.37 |
| Ashley Nelson | Neurology | AZ | $309,279.73 |
| Stephanie King | Neurology | LA | $308,624.53 |
| Elizabeth Roberts | Rheumatology | TX | $308,080.83 |
| Susan Taylor | Rheumatology | SC | $307,858.47 |
| Timothy Rogers | Dermatology | LA | $300,324.91 |
| Sarah Chen | HIV Medicine | VA | $299,282.14 |
| Paul Turner | Rheumatology | WA | $298,822.75 |
| Andrew Young | Oncology | AL | $298,589.04 |
| Rachel Parker | Neurology | NJ | $293,554.69 |
| Benjamin Cook | Internal Medicine | AL | $290,577.64 |
| Andrew Young | Pulmonology | TN | $287,715.34 |
| Michael Rodriguez | Dermatology | CA | $281,837.25 |
| Gregory Evans | Infectious Disease | OH | $279,484.85 |
| Rachel Parker | Infectious Disease | PA | $279,123.18 |
| Eric Sanchez | Neurology | GA | $274,975.98 |
| Lisa Garcia | Rheumatology | MI | $274,486.60 |
| Matthew Walker | Ophthalmology | NJ | $273,938.18 |
| Scott Collins | Genetics | WI | $269,783.04 |
| Christine Edwards | Hematology | TN | $268,201.09 |
| Nicole Lopez | Cardiology | AL | $266,201.93 |
| John Anderson | Hepatology | MA | $262,016.51 |
| Charles Baker | Dermatology | MI | $255,458.12 |
| Mark Perez | Dermatology | MD | $252,123.85 |
| Laura Hall | Cardiology | IL | $249,648.63 |
| Sarah Chen | Hepatology | MN | $248,878.98 |
| Christopher Clark | Pulmonology | VA | $247,857.44 |
| Ashley Nelson | Oncology | IN | $245,077.97 |
| Nicole Lopez | Cardiology | GA | $242,466.83 |
| James Wilson | Endocrinology | AZ | $241,036.17 |
| Elizabeth Roberts | Psychiatry | GA | $240,328.29 |
| Laura Hall | Nephrology | GA | $238,395.88 |
| Emily Thompson | Gastroenterology | AL | $236,477.20 |
| Jessica Moore | Rheumatology | MO | $234,513.43 |
| Andrew Young | Cardiology | TN | $234,420.24 |
| Patricia Davis | Internal Medicine | IN | $229,890.74 |
| Benjamin Cook | Hepatology | TN | $228,085.34 |
| Brian Wright | Neurology | TX | $227,773.23 |
| Christopher Clark | Nephrology | AL | $226,696.06 |
| Sarah Chen | Oncology | AZ | $225,174.82 |
Browse by Medical Specialty
Pharmaceutical payments vary significantly by medical specialty. Some specialties, such as orthopedics and oncology, tend to receive higher payment volumes due to expensive drugs, devices, and procedures. Browse payments organized by specialty to understand patterns in your doctor's field.
- Cardiology -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to cardiology specialists
- Oncology -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to oncology specialists
- Orthopedics -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to orthopedics specialists
- Psychiatry -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to psychiatry specialists
- Neurology -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to neurology specialists
- Dermatology -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to dermatology specialists
- Ophthalmology -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to ophthalmology specialists
- Internal Medicine -- Explore pharmaceutical payments to internal medicine specialists
Browse by State
Pharmaceutical payment patterns vary by geography. States with major medical centers and teaching hospitals tend to have higher payment volumes. Browse payments by state to see how pharma spending compares in your region.
How to Use DoctorPharmaData
Getting started is easy. Here are the ways you can explore pharmaceutical payment data:
- Search by Doctor Name -- Enter your doctor's name to see all pharmaceutical payments they have received, along with AI-powered analysis of their financial relationships.
- Search by Pharma Company -- Look up any pharmaceutical or medical device company to see which doctors they pay, how much they spend, and which specialties they target.
- Browse by Specialty -- Explore payment patterns organized by medical specialty to understand what is normal for your doctor's field.
- Browse by State -- See geographic breakdowns of pharmaceutical payments across the United States.
Understanding the Sunshine Act
The Physician Payments Sunshine Act was enacted in 2010 as part of the Affordable Care Act. It requires pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers to report payments and transfers of value to physicians and teaching hospitals to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). These reports are published annually in the CMS Open Payments database.
Types of payments that must be reported include:
- Consulting Fees: Payments for professional consulting services, advisory board participation, and expert opinions
- Speaking and Education: Honoraria for speaking at conferences, continuing medical education events, and promotional speaking engagements
- Food and Beverage: Meals provided during sales visits, conferences, or educational events
- Travel and Lodging: Transportation and accommodation expenses for conferences, meetings, and speaking engagements
- Research Funding: Payments for conducting clinical trials, research studies, and investigator-initiated research
- Ownership Interest: Physician ownership stakes, dividends, and investment returns from pharmaceutical or device companies
Payment does not imply wrongdoing. Many of these payments represent legitimate professional activities. However, transparency allows patients to make more informed decisions about their healthcare.
Why Transparency Matters
Research has shown that pharmaceutical payments to physicians can influence prescribing patterns. Studies published in journals such as JAMA Internal Medicine and BMJ have found correlations between industry payments and higher-cost prescribing, increased brand-name drug use, and shifts in prescribing behavior. While correlation does not equal causation, transparency empowers patients to have informed conversations with their doctors about these relationships.
DoctorPharmaData does not suggest that any payment is improper. Our goal is to provide factual information and AI-powered context so that patients can better understand the financial ecosystem of American healthcare.
Our AI Analysis
Every payment and doctor profile in our database is analyzed by artificial intelligence to provide:
- Conflict-of-Interest Assessment: AI evaluates whether a payment amount, type, or pattern could present a potential conflict of interest
- Peer Comparison: How a doctor's payments compare to the average for their specialty and region
- Patient Guidance: Practical questions to ask your doctor and context for understanding payment patterns
- Transparency Scores: Algorithmic ratings that summarize a doctor's overall payment profile
AI-generated analysis is not medical, legal, or financial advice. Always consult with your healthcare provider about any concerns.
Frequently Asked Questions About Pharmaceutical Payment Transparency
What is CMS Open Payments data?
CMS Open Payments is a federal database maintained by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under the Physician Payments Sunshine Act. It contains records of every payment made by pharmaceutical and medical device companies to physicians and teaching hospitals in the United States. Companies are legally required to report these payments annually.
Does a pharmaceutical payment mean my doctor is corrupt?
No. Receiving pharmaceutical payments does not imply wrongdoing or corruption. Many payments fund legitimate activities such as clinical research, medical education, advisory board participation, and consulting on drug development. The Sunshine Act requires disclosure precisely to enable transparency, not to suggest impropriety.
How should I interpret the payment amounts shown on this site?
Payment amounts should be evaluated in context. A large research grant has very different implications than a large promotional speaking fee. Compare your doctor against specialty and geographic peers rather than absolute dollar figures. Our AI analysis provides this context automatically for each physician profile.
How often is the data updated?
DoctorPharmaData regularly ingests new data from the CMS Open Payments API. The federal government publishes updated payment data annually, with each reporting cycle covering a calendar year. We enrich new records with AI analysis as they are ingested into our database.
What is a Transparency Score?
The Transparency Score is an algorithmic assessment (0-100) of a physician's overall pharmaceutical payment profile relative to peers in the same medical specialty. A higher score indicates fewer or more routine payments. The score considers payment amounts, types, number of pharmaceutical relationships, and specialty norms. It is not a definitive judgment.
Can I verify the data shown on this site?
Yes. All payment data comes from the official CMS Open Payments database at openpaymentsdata.cms.gov. You can search for any physician by name or NPI number to verify payment records directly with the federal government.