Stop the kick-backs. Disclosure is yet another joke, insult and farce in the name of health care reform and another insult to American health care consumers. Just take a look at the web sites of the hip and knee replacement companies involved in the $300+ million dollar False Claims settlement of 2007. They now have to disclose their payments to the greedy orthopedic physicians. Disclose, not stop.

What happens now? Look at the big payments (as now disclosed on their relative web sites) in 2007 and then look at the minimal payments to date in 2008. Can’t you just visualize the rep talking to the docs at dinner while dissolving their $150 bottles of wine? ‘Hey doc, we paid you big bucks last year. We are in the cross-hairs right now because of last year’s legal issues, therefore we can’t pay you too much this year. As the exposure subsides we will slowly increase your payments over future years back to the big bucks - as long as you continue to use and promote our hardware.”

The issue for the industry, including the Pharmafia, is lay low for a while and when the spotlight dims get the payoffs back into gear!

And, please absorb the word settlement. If you don’t get the ramifications, run for Congress. By the way, the DOJ will avoid additional prosecution if the company agrees to establish “compliance programs and monitoring.” Maybe we should do the same for drug traffickers and street gangs? Oops, they already do that. Just Google the Purdue Pharma settlement.

Cynical, you say? Yes, and it’s about time we took off the gloves, got real and begin to combat the charlatans who exhibit so much control over our health care and OUR ever-increasing costs. Are you listening Mr. Daschle? Enough for now.