A recent study published in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery found significant gender disparities in payments that orthopedic surgeons receive from the medical device and pharmaceutical industries.
Researchers from New York City-based Hospital for Special Surgery used CMS' information on the financial relationships between physicians and medical device companies to examine payments for royalties, licensing and consulting fees from 2016-17.
Total industry payments amounted to $700 million, with roughly 11 percent of orthopedic surgeons receiving 88 percent of payments during the forecast period, according to the study. Of these physicians, only 2 percent were women.
The study noted that the average male orthopedic surgeon received more than five times the amount paid to any woman, and men were more likely to receive royalty payments than women.
Authors of the study highlighted the need for "resources to be equally and fairly distributed" based on "merit rather than gender."