AstraZeneca stops paying for German doctors to attend conferences
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The UK’s new Bribery Act, which took effect in April, seems to be having a knock on effect in Germany, where at least one German subsidiary of a UK based drug company has announced it will no longer pay for doctors to attend international conferences.
Kai Richter, medical director for AstraZeneca Deutschland, told the Financial Times Deutschland that beginning in the second half of the year the company will not cover the cost of hotels and travel or conference fees for doctors attending medical science events.
Dr Richter was not quoted in the article as specifically saying the decision was taken on account of the new UK law, instead indicating that the policy change was simply an internal company decision. However, the Financial Times quoted what it called a drug branch insider as saying the UK’s Bribery Act was a “catalytic moment.”
When asked about the new company policy by the BMJ, AstraZeneca Deutschland referred the BMJ to AstraZeneca’s headquarters in London. In a prepared statement, a London based spokesperson told the BMJ that the company is introducing changes in its “global sales and marketing practices.”
The spokesperson added, “To that end, we are discontinuing certain activities, even though these practices were, and continue to be, considered acceptable in the industry. We have put a global stop on providing any gifts to healthcare professionals, other than low monetary value cultural and educational items. We remain committed to providing accurate information about our medicines to healthcare professionals in a variety of forms and we will continue to provide opportunities to learn about our medicines both from our own employees and from other healthcare professionals speaking on our behalf. However, we will no longer pay for doctors to attend international conferences but will instead focus our efforts on local educational opportunities.”
The spokesperson deemed that changes were not prompted by a single external event. “We review our compliance policies and procedures regularly and make changes as appropriate based on both external and internal factors, to ensure our business practices reflect all relevant laws, regulations and industry codes that govern the company’s business.”
Klaus Lieb, a board member of the German doctor group No Free Lunch Germany (Mein Essen Zahl Ich Selbst), which encourages doctors to refuse financial assistance or gifts from drug companies, described AstraZeneca Deutschland’s new policy as a “starting point.”
“I am not convinced they are doing it without external pressure,” said Professor Lieb, director of psychiatry and psychotherapy at the University of Mainz. “But in the end, it is a step in the right direction.”
His group advocates more transparency in Germany—for example, guidelines that would require publication of the names of doctors who accept money or gifts from drug companies and the names of the companies. The group also would like doctors to adopt a code of ethics concerning drug companies. “If the physicians do not develop policy by themselves, then I guarantee the government will do it at some point,” he said.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
AstraZeneca stops paying for German doctors to attend conferences -- bmj.com
via bmj.com
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