As a dental student, I am surprised to find out that this practice has not yet been made illegal. One of roles of a professional is to place the patients' interests first. This role is compromised if choices affecting patients are determined by monetary gain. Patients do not benefit from fee splitting. The referring doctor should always choose the specialist who can provide the best quality of service to the patients and not be tempted to choose specialists based on commission. Remove the temptation by formally outlawing fee splitting. How one would enforce the ban of under-the-table fee splitting is beyond me.