Payments to healthcare organisations reported by the medical device industry in Europe from 2017 to 2019: An observational study (June 2024)

Summary

Medical device industry payments to healthcare organisations (HCOs) can create conflicts of interest which can undermine patient care. One way of addressing this concern is by enhancing transparency of industry financial support to HCOs. MedTech Europe, a medical device trade body, operate a system of disclosure of education payments to European HCOs. This study aimed to characterise payments reported in this database and to evaluate the disclosure system.

Content

Highlights

• Between 2017 and 2019, 116 medical device companies disclosed over €425 million in payments.
• A small number of medical device companies accounted for the vast majority of these payments and most payments were to healthcare organisations in a small number of countries.
• The database itself was rated as having a range of significant shortcomings such as the limited breadth of recipients, donors, and payment areas covered.
• A European wide system of mandatory disclosure for the medical device and pharmaceutical industries addressing these areas should be introduced to address the shortcomings of this database.