The distribution of industry payments among pediatric dermatologists from 2015 to 2021.

Abstract

To understand the landscape of industry payments to pediatric dermatologists to foster transparency and identify potential disparities in funding. Using the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments database, a national cross-sectional study was performed examining payments to pediatric dermatologists from 2015 to 2021. Of the 147 pediatric dermatologists who received industry funding, 35 were male and 112 were female. $9 million in payments was amassed, with 10% of pediatric dermatologists accounting for 94% of total industry payments. Consulting was the most common service, with Pfizer Inc., Amgen Inc., and Regeneron Healthcare Solutions Inc. representing the top three companies. Mean payment was $143,836 for males and $35,943 for females (p < .001). Eight female and seven male pediatric dermatologists received payments in the top 10th percentile, with different average payment in this subgroup (females $447,588 vs. males $698,746, p = .03). 11 states did not have a pediatric dermatologist receiving industry payments, while California (19) and Texas (12) had the most. There are approximately 400 board-certified pediatric dermatologists in the United States and fewer than 40% are receiving monetary compensation from private industry. A fraction of physicians accounted for a majority of total industry payments and industry payments to male pediatric dermatologists were higher despite nearly triple the number of female pediatric dermatologists. With the rise of valuable partnerships between healthcare and industry in modern medicine, the implications of geographic, gender, and financial disparity of industry payments in pediatric dermatology are worthy of further study.