This fall a proviso of the Affordable Care Act goes into effect known as the Sunshine Act, which requires all medical device and pharmaceutical companies to report publicly all payments made to doctors over the amount of $10. This is meant to curb big pharma and device manufacturers from giving doctors and other medical professionals shady kickbacks for using their products, or at least to make the public aware of such practices. Charlie Ornstein, a senior editor for ProPublica, told CBS News that the practice of big corporations providing “pay to play” for doctors who use their medications or devices is nothing new. It has been in place for decades. Ornstein told CBS News that the promotion part “has gotten a lot of attention in recent years because drug companies have paid … billions of dollars to settle lawsuits that have accused them of improper marketing and giving kickbacks to doctors.”

It is an illegal practice for corporations to give kickbacks to doctors for prescribing their products, but it is not illegal for corporations to give doctors money for promoting their drug. This makes for a very grey line between legitimate and illegitimate relationships between drug manufacturers and the medical professional world. Ornstein told CBS News that it all boils down to trust. If your doctor recommends a certain drug to you, you should be able to assume that he is recommending that particular drug because it is what your body needs.

Ornstein said that it would make sense that a doctor would first prescribe a generic or cheaper alternative, as the cost of drugs continues to skyrocket. Another good example of a doctor doing what is best for his patient would be to recommend a non-medication alternative “to reach your goals perhaps first.”

According to ProPublica, the issue of doctors having to settle issues of marketing fraud is widespread. Since 2008, at least 15 manufacturers of drugs or medical devices have had to pay $6.5 billion collectively to settle such accusations. Yet no individual doctor has faced the same penalties, “despite allegations of fraud or of conduct that put patients at risk.”

If you or someone you know suspects that your doctor has illegally received kickbacks for prescribing medication, the most important step is to speak with a legal professional. Contact a Westport medical malpractice attorney today.

The past year was a big one regarding medical malpractice law and lawsuits. At the beginning of the year in Illinois, Gov. Pat Quinn “quietly signed a law allowing [medical malpractice attorneys] to collect higher fees,” according the Chicago Tribune, a practice that supporters say aims to protect victims of medical malpractice. Rather than Illinois attorneys being able to take sometimes up to 50 percent of their clients’ award, “the law is aimed at setting a standardized rate of pay,” the Tribune reports. While no such law has been passed in Connecticut yet—Connecticut is still one of the 15 states that “establishes a specific limit or sliding scale on contingency fees attorneys may charge clients,” according to the Connecticut State government—there were other changes made to medical malpractice procedure in the state this year.

In April, according to the Connecticut Mirror, the Connecticut State Judiciary Committee heard testimony “on a proposed change to how cases against physicians come to court.” Attorneys who were pro-change explained that unless the doctor was specifically described in state law, many legitimate cases of medical malpractice were being thrown out in court. “Since 2005,” the Connecticut Mirror reports, “a patient wanting to claim damages from a doctor for alleged negligence must have his or her case reviewed by a similar health care provider.”

According to the Connecticut Post, the legislation that “would change who could write the opinions from “similar” health care providers to “qualified” health care providers.” Several physicians and hospital officials, including the American Medical Association, “submitted testimony against the legislation,” the Post reports, “saying it would undo the 2005 reform that curbed the skyrocketing malpractice insurance rates.” After the 2005 law was passed that required this type of opinion, “the number of medical malpractice cases filed in the state has dropped about 20 percent,” according to the Post.

If you believe you have been the victim of medical malpractice in Connecticut, the most important first step you can take is to contact an experienced malpractice attorney. Don’t go through it alone. Contact Richard R. Raphael today.