Device Makers Have Funneled Billions to Orthopedic Surgeons Who Use Their Products

While fines for violating anti-kickback laws reach into the millions, profitable device makers may see that as the cost of doing business, says prof

Regulators have long focused on pharmaceutical companies’ payments to doctors, but far less known is the impact of similar payments from device companies to surgeons. Satyrenko/Shutterstock

Dr. Kingsley R. Chin was little more than a decade out of Harvard Medical School when the sales of his spine surgical implants took off.

Chin has patented more than 40 pieces of such hardware, including doughnut-shaped plastic cages, titanium screws, and other products used to repair spines—generating $100 million for his company, SpineFrontier, according to government officials.