if the thunder don't getcha then the lightnin' will . . .

"Newspapers Examine Pharmaceutical Companies' Influence On Physicians
Main Category: Pharma Industry / Biotech Industry News
Article Date: 29 Jun 2007 - 14:00 PDT

Newspapers on Wednesday examined issues related to the relationship
between pharmaceutical companies and physicians. Summaries of the
articles appear below.

* Gifts: Psychiatrists in Vermont earn more money from
pharmaceutical companies than other medical specialists, according to
a report released on Tuesday by the state, the New York Times reports.
Vermont identified the top 100 paid specialists in the state, finding
11 psychiatrists and five endocrinologists in the group. The state
found that payments to psychiatrists more than doubled from an average
of $20,835 in 2005 to $45,692 in 2006. Endocrinologists earned the
second highest amount from drug companies at an average of $33,730 in
2006. Researchers also found that psychiatrists who earn the most from
drug companies prescribe atypical antipsychotic drugs off-label to
children most often. A similar pattern was found in Minnesota, where
psychiatrists earn more from drug companies than other physicians and
prescribe more antipsychotic drugs to children. The findings "have
helped to fuel a growing interest among state and federal officials to
document and restrict payments to doctors from drug makers," according
to the Times (Harris, New York Times, 6/27).

* Continuing medical education: Pharmaceutical companies in 2005
paid for about half of the $2.25 billion annual cost of continuing
medical education courses that physicians must take to maintain their
medical licenses, the Washington Post reports. Data show that drug and
medical device makers pay for about two-thirds of the cost of courses
sponsored by prestigious medical schools. Critics say that the rise of
pharmaceutical-sponsored CME courses "raises health care costs, skews
doctors' treatment decisions and allows the industry to skirt laws
against advertising 'off-label' uses for its products," according to
the Post. Senate Special Committee on Aging Chair Herb Kohl (D-Wis.)
said, "It appears that everyone profits from this pervasive system of
gifts and payments, except the consumer." However, Scott Lassman,
senior assistant general counsel for the Pharmaceutical Research and
Manufacturers of America, said that pharmaceutical sponsorship of CME
courses allows physicians to learn about the latest medical and
scientific research. He added that the courses "are viewed as running
independently of the pharmaceutical company. The company may be
providing the funding for it, but they are not directing the content."
The Senate committee will meet Wednesday to discuss the issue
(Williamson/Lee, Washington Post, 6/27).

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can
view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the
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The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for
kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family
Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family
Foundation. All rights reserved."

. . .

"How drug lobbyists influence doctors

By Jerome P. Kassirer | February 13, 2006"

http://www.boston.com/yourlife/health/other/articles/2006/02/13/how_drug_lobbyis.../

. . .

"How Pharmaceutical Companies Use Enticement to 'Educate' Physicians
By Brian Ross and David W. Scott

It was doctors' night out last June at the world-renowned Museum of
Modern Art in New York City, and the Saturday night party, put on by
Pfizer Inc., was lavish. The event was strictly private, closed to
reporters, as the pharmaceutical company entertained a very select
list of doctors and their guests.

But Primetime's undercover cameras saw the kind of big-money splurge
that some say drives up the cost of prescription drugs and corrupts
the practice of medicine. Further investigation into the $6 billion
spent by drug companies for what they say is a way to educate doctors
showed that tactics like lavish gifts and trips are surprisingly
common.

"It's embarrassing, it's extravagant and it's unethical," said Dr.
Arnold Relman, a Harvard Medical School professor and the former
editor of the New England Journal of Medicine. "It makes the doctor
feel beholden . it suborns the judgment of the doctor."

But doctors seemed thrilled to have been invited for a weekend in New
York City with some seminars along the way, with all expenses paid by
Pfizer on behalf of one of its drugs, Viagra."

http://www.lauralee.com/news/pharmenticement.htm