Majority of U.S. Neurologists Prescribing Multiple Sclerosis Medications Have Received Industry Payments, Study Reveals

A recent five-year analysis utilizing Medicare data has uncovered that nearly 80% of neurologists prescribing disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for multiple sclerosis (MS) in the United States have received financial payments from pharmaceutical companies. The comprehensive study, published in BMJ Open, found that doctors who prescribed higher volumes of MS medications were more likely to have accepted industry payments, especially for services like consulting, speaking engagements, and travel.

The investigation analyzed data from 7,401 neurologists who prescribed at least 11 prescriptions per year for 20 different MS drugs produced by 10 pharmaceutical firms between 2015 and 2019. Of these, 78.5% received a total of approximately $163.6 million in industry payments, with a small group of high-volume prescribers accounting for nearly all of the monetary exchanges.

The study highlighted that doctors who received larger sums were more inclined to prescribe a company's drug, with the probability increasing significantly as the size of the payment grew. For example, a payment of $50 increased prescribing likelihood by 10%, while a $5,000 payment boosted it by up to 50%. Similarly, ongoing payments and recent financial exchanges were associated with higher chances of preferential prescribing.

While the researchers clarified that the study cannot establish causation, these findings raise concerns about the influence of pharmaceutical promotion on prescribing behavior. Given that MS treatments are one of the most expensive neurological drugs covered by Medicare, the implications of industry payments on healthcare costs and patient choice warrant careful consideration.

The authors advocate for continued transparency and debate whether current measures effectively mitigate conflicts of interest between physicians and industry, emphasizing the importance of ensuring that therapy choices are driven by clinical necessity rather than financial incentives.

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-08-neurologists-multiple-sclerosis-drugs-pharma.html