GSK fined $3 billion

[ChalkHearts]

www.theguardian.com/business/2012/jul/03/glaxosmithkline-fined-bribing-doctors-pharmaceuticals


Glaxo smith Kline wrongly promoted their drugs to DRs - at very lavish 'conferences'

Does this sort of thing also happen In the UK?

I assume it does to some degree. Even if not as obvious as this - because it's clear this is head offices strategy.

[honeysucklejasmine]

Doctors don't decide what drugs to buy in quite the same way in the UK, due to NICE. Whether they are influenced to prescribe a certain drug once NICE authorise it, I don't know.

Very naughty of them! But very normal in some countries.

[daisychain01]

Just to point out

The dates in question go back 16 years, to the year 2000 It doesn't make it right but a lot has been done since then to regulate the way pharmacy companies communicate commercial and scientific data about medicines at Congresses. Especially in US which works to a very different regulatory framework than in UK / Europe

Law suits take along time to investigate and resolve. Newspapers pick up stories like this year's later, 16 years later than the actual events.

[daisychain01]

Sorry about the typos

[daisychain01]

Also your article from the website was published in 2012, so it is 4 year old news you are looking at!

[Holly34]

Its bad!! Children antidepressants?? Not actully effective and still promoting to increase their bloody sales!! Makes me sick You would think they have enough measures in place to check with the sales reps were following the right sales guidelines.

[ChalkHearts]

Sorry the article was old. I didn't notice.

But the problem wasn't just then bribing the doctors - it was also GSK saying drugs were safe for children when they weren't.

That is massively bad. GSK have such influence over what drugs, and vaccinations, we're given. And no morals or ethics to go with that massive responsibility.

[BastardGoDarkly]

GSK are arseholes.

[thecatfromjapan]

Whenever I see press stories attacking NICE because they haven't rushed to approve some new wonder drug, I always think about this sort of thing.
I think there is a lot of pressure from interested lobby groups to get rid of NICE - and this is why.

[Mumblechum1]

Although there is clearly no excuse for the reported scandal I don't think it's fair to describe GSK as arseholes; they donate hundreds fo millions in cash every year to charites, for example in the case of elephantitis, they've virtually eradicated it by donating milliions of free vaccines & treatments. www.gsk.com/en-gb/behind-the-science/access-to-healthcare/alguetas-smile-fighting-lymphatic-filariasis/

[Sidge]

keepon that doesn't happen. GPs aren't allowed to receive payment or commission for prescribing in the UK.

If anything they are penalised for overspending on prescribing; they are audited by medication management committees.

[daisychain01]

It's all very well insulting pharmacy companies, but I sense that comes from ignorance and lack of appreciation about the people in those organisations who devote 20, 30, 40 year careers developing the science that people benefit from in society, globally.

If only for those people, I believe respect needs to be paid rather than hurling insults. That is only a personal opinion, but I don't think Mumsnet is the right place to express such comments.

[daisychain01]

Keepon I think you may be partially right, in that I seem to remember the UK government recommending statins based on scientific data that showed stating to have significant health benefits for a certain profile of the population

However it was not a bribe or commission, and certainly would not have been driven by a pharmaceutical company. Nowadays, it is incredibly well regulated and covered under FDA and EMA ethical guidelines.

[PolkadotsAndMoonbeams]

It'll be the MHRA here I think - FDA is American.

[LaContessaDiPlump]

There are a LOT of measures in place now to prevent pharma from exerting undue influence over medical professionals, and also preventing medical professionals from accepting it. For example, they're not allowed to give freebies valued >5 euro at conferences, and academics are strictly required to give notice of their conflict of interest information on manuscripts/publications in general. It is all much more transparent than it used to be, deliberately so.

[Doingmybestmum]

There is a Prescription Medicines Code of Practice, with strict guidelines: www.pmcpa.org.uk/thecode/Pages/default.aspx.
If pharma cos bring the industry into disrepute ads are taken out in the BMJ pharmaceutical journal and nursing standard. All cases are available to read on the website.

If anyone (medic, patient, public or whistleblower) thinks that a pharma co has behaved unethically please contact //www.pmcpa.org.uk or call 02077478880 :)

[Hoppinggreen]

I have been a medical rep and we were VERY tightly regulated.
I as never asked to do anything unethical by my employer, however the things I was asked for by GP's were outrageous in some cases.
We could lose our jobs for behaving outside the rules with regard to gifts, hospitality etc but certain GP's would ask us to constantly break the rules and if we refused we knew our competitors would do it anyway. The things involved were very minor and I was pretty shocked that GP's, who lets face it are not exactly underpaid would go to extremes for a free meal or similar. These GP's knew how to get around the rules as well, suggesting I get invoices from friends restaurants and then pay them cash or buy them electrical equipment for their homes and pretend it was for The surgery.
I've got plenty of tales that would shock believe me!
Of course the majority of GP's weren't like this but there were quite a few who were and most of them were from the same background.
I worked for one of the largest pharma companies in the world and while I'm sure there must have been unethical dealings at a higher level or outside the UK the lower orders like ourselves had it drummed into us constantly how we had to behave.

[DeoGratias]

Today's £45m fine against GSK was for "pay for delay" fees against generic companies whom GSK had sued for patent infringement, I believe. You get cash if you stay out of the market for X time.

[ChalkHearts]

uk.mobile.reuters.com/article/idUKKCN0VL0H9?irpc=932