Ongoing debate regarding physician's speaking fees at University of Wisconsin

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel had a story today about the ongoing debate at University of Wisconsin about the speaking fees UW physicians can receive from pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Earlier this year a new conflict of interest policy was proposed which would ban UW physicians from giving presentations paid for by pharmaceutical and medical device companies. But uproar from orthopedic physicians has meant an exemption for presentations about medical devices but maintains the ban for drug talks. The proposed policy has raised debates about ethics in medicine, conflicts of interest, and power and influence in medical schools. Some physicians are concerned about their own autonomy to conduct their medical practices and supplement their incomes as they see fit. Others are concerned about how one group of physicians was able to influence the policy in their favor.

Whatever the outcomes, it seems that these debates are only beginning, as medical schools and physicians continue to consider the interaction between pharmaceutical and medical device companies and medical practitioners.