Here’s where Philly-area doctors traveled with $3 million they received from drugmakers, medical-device companies

Pharmaceutical and device-making companies spent $3.4 million on travel for Philadelphia-area physicians, nurse practitioners, and other health-care providers in 2022, according to a federal database.

Physicians received about $3 million of the payments. That money supported trips by more than 1,250 doctors, with half receiving payments larger than $1,000.

Domestic trips accounted for more than $2.5 million of the payments. The top destinations were Chicago, Dallas, Miami, Fort Worth, and Philadelphia.

Thirty U.S. cities saw more traffic from Philly-area health providers than any international travel destination. But the industry still spent over $400,000 on their global travel. The cities abroad generating the most in expenses were Sao Paulo, Paris, and Sydney.

Gas mileage, cab fares, airfare, and hotel fees are among the travel and lodging payments that many health-care providers must report to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Open Payment program. This includes a physician’s airfare and hotel for a training and meeting of an advisory board, for example.

Open Payments shows the financial relationships between industry and medical providers to illuminate potential conflicts of interest.

More physicians traveled to, and around, Philadelphia than any other city, and they spent more money on such local travel than any other single destination. But it wasn’t a big fraction overall.

More than 230 doctors from the area traveled and lodged in Philadelphia on the industry’s dime, and roughly half of them already work in the city. Area doctors billed a combined $140,000.