THE STATE Board of Medicine says 3,800 licensed physicians have offices in West Virginia, and 2,200 out-of-state doctors also are licensed to practice here.

Meanwhile, 111 pharmaceutical firms were forced to disclose that they showered 14,933 "gifts, grants or payments" on West Virginia physicians during the last half of 2007 - with some payola exceeding $50,000.

In other words, there were more freebies than doctors, so some Mountain State practitioners obviously are taking multiple giveaways from drug firm agents trying to induce them to prescribe high-cost brands. Remember, the 14,933 inducements were given in just six months, so the yearly total must be around 30,000.

This disclosure - the first filing under new state reporting rules, revealed by Statehouse columnist Phil Kabler - spotlights the absurdity of a state board's decision to hide the names of West Virginia physicians who take more than $10,000 a year each in payola. The Pharmaceutical Cost Management Council voted for concealment after state medical groups complained.

Let them complain. Patients and the public deserve to know which doctors take such freebies, and how much.

Under the new rules, gifts under $50 needn't be reported. More lucrative ones are listed only in anonymous categories, such as: 675 payments between $1,250 and $1,500 - 39 between $5,000 and $6,250 - 14 between $10,000 and $11,250 - three between $36,250 and $37,500 - one between $43,750 and $45,000 - one between $51,250 and $52,000.

State Sen. Dan Foster, D-Kanawha - a Charleston physician who has crusaded for payola disclosure - said it's obvious that "a lot of people are getting various amounts of money, and some people are getting a lot of money." Foster said the revealed sums are "just the tip of the iceberg."

The magnitude of this gift-giving evidently jolted the Manchin administration. State Pharmaceutical Advocate Shauna Phares said Tuesday that the Cost Management Council will rethink its decision to hide the identity of doctors.

Good, but the board mustn't hedge with partial disclosure. The rule it once rejected - to name every West Virginia physician to takes more than $10,000 a year in drug company inducements - is too evasive. A $1,000 threshold would serve the public better.

Meanwhile, 111 pharmaceutical firms were forced to disclose that they showered 14,933 "gifts, grants or payments" on West Virginia physicians during the last half of 2007 - with some payola exceeding $50,000.

In other words, there were more freebies than doctors, so some Mountain State practitioners obviously are taking multiple giveaways from drug firm agents trying to induce them to prescribe high-cost brands. Remember, the 14,933 inducements were given in just six months, so the yearly total must be around 30,000.

This disclosure - the first filing under new state reporting rules, revealed by Statehouse columnist Phil Kabler - spotlights the absurdity of a state board's decision to hide the names of West Virginia physicians who take more than $10,000 a year each in payola. The Pharmaceutical Cost Management Council voted for concealment after state medical groups complained.

Let them complain. Patients and the public deserve to know which doctors take such freebies, and how much.

Under the new rules, gifts under $50 needn't be reported. More lucrative ones are listed only in anonymous categories, such as: 675 payments between $1,250 and $1,500 - 39 between $5,000 and $6,250 - 14 between $10,000 and $11,250 - three between $36,250 and $37,500 - one between $43,750 and $45,000 - one between $51,250 and $52,000.

State Sen. Dan Foster, D-Kanawha - a Charleston physician who has crusaded for payola disclosure - said it's obvious that "a lot of people are getting various amounts of money, and some people are getting a lot of money." Foster said the revealed sums are "just the tip of the iceberg."

The magnitude of this gift-giving evidently jolted the Manchin administration. State Pharmaceutical Advocate Shauna Phares said Tuesday that the Cost Management Council will rethink its decision to hide the identity of doctors.

Good, but the board mustn't hedge with partial disclosure. The rule it once rejected - to name every West Virginia physician to takes more than $10,000 a year in drug company inducements - is too evasive. A $1,000 threshold would serve the public better.