In Reply to the Letter to the Editor Regarding “An Analysis of Political Contributions from Neurosurgeons in the United States”

Political Campaign Contributions of Surgeons in the United States Throughout the 2020 Election Cycle

“…As previously discussed, surgeons are consistently among the highest-paid physicians, and the 2 specialties we highlight, which are the lowest-salaried surgical specialties, pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology, 15 are the only 2 in which a majority of unique contributions and total contributions are Democratic. 1 On the other hand, 2 of the highest-salaried surgical specialties, plastic surgery and orthopedic surgery, 16 had some of the widest gaps between total donations to Republican and Democratic committees. The total amount of donations to Republicans among plastic surgeons totaled more than $600 000, while Democratic contributions added up to just under $140 000.…”

“…Similar to prior studies, if at least 80% of organization funding was not directed to a single party, the contribution was classified as nonpartisan. 1 If the reported committee identification number was not found on the FEC or the OpenSecrets database, the donation was categorized as unknown and excluded from analysis.…”

“…A s health care and politics have become increasingly intertwined, government policy has directly impacted the access, delivery, and compensation of health care services. [1][2][3] However, less considered is the influence of individual physicians on the formation and enactment of legislation. Blurring the distinction between personal and professional views, physicians' ideologies are often a balance between the health care of patients and their own personal wealth.…”