Home > Waco Breaking News > Archives > 2008 > July > 11 > Entry
Doctors may no longer get drug company trinkets
Those freebies of pens, notepads and such given to doctors by pharmaceutical companies may become a thing of the past, according to this blog link I was sent by a colleague.
The pharmaceutical industry’s trade association, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, has issued a new voluntary code of conduct that prohibits giving out those freebies with the name of drug brands to the nation’s doctors.
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Comments
By Don
July 11, 2008 11:23 AM | Link to this
That’s great, but how about those hot tubs, car payments, expensive liquor, etc.
Blood pressure standards were lowered considerably, resulting in increased sales of medication for hypertension. The same thing has happened with blood sugar levels. Now almost everyone over 30 is a Type 2 diabetic. Think how that’s increased the numbers in drug sales.
Looks like we’re in trouble.
By Reader
July 11, 2008 12:59 PM | Link to this
A simple smokescreen of ethics.
Read this article link:http://www.slate.com/id/2119712/ to help you understand how this drug rep/doctor relationship works. The drug companies know exactly how much of their product each doctor “sells” for them.
I wish I could believe that my Dr. only prescribes what is best for me, but I think it’s naive to believe that the drug companies would be willing to pay the drug reps as well as they do to represent a very few products if the result was not significantly increased revenue.
Getting rid of trinkets won’t change anything.
By Waco Doctor
July 11, 2008 1:39 PM | Link to this
In fact, drug companies hold far more sway over naive patients with direct-to-consumer TV and magazine ads than they do over doctors with pencils and post-it notes. The only time I write a brand name is if, truly, there is no generic version, or, more ominously, if a patiet absolutely insists, even after a lengthy discussion. In fact, if you came to our office, you will note not a single one of those “waiting room magazines” supplied by the pharma industry, precisely so that patients will no longer come back, clutching to one of those magazines, pointing to an ad, and saying, “This ad says I should ask my doctor whether Mycoxafloppin is right for me. Can I try it”? “No”, I say. “mydixadun is just as good. And, it is generic with a lower co-pay”. “But, (says the patient) it says here that Mycoxafloppin has a lower incidence of the rare but sometimes fatal side effect of Buffalofart Breath, and, besides, this ad includes a coupon for the copay”. “Whatever…”. As for “hot tubs, car payments and expensive liquor”- Ha! If you know where I can get some, please post it in a reply, you can come over and use my Viagra hot tub at any time (if you tell me where to get it).
By Waco Doctor
July 11, 2008 2:01 PM | Link to this
Part 2- Furthermore, this is just a smokescreen for drug companies to get good press from something they were gonna cut anyway, since they are cutting positions like crazy in anticipation of Pelosi’s nationalized formulary.
When that happens, the only hot tubs being delivered will be to the Congressmen on the formulary committee.
If pens and post-it notes for doctors worked, you can be darn sure they wouldn’t be cutting it.
By null
July 11, 2008 4:15 PM | Link to this
Excellent posts there “Waco Doctor”.
By Drug Rep
July 11, 2008 5:22 PM | Link to this
As a current drug rep, I can tell you that the era of being able to “buy off” doctors went away several years ago. These days, we can’t even take a doctor and his spouse out for dinner. For every lunch we take into an office, we have to have a signature for every single person that eats. This includes doctors and their staff. I truly believe that the vast majority of doctors in this area prescribe medicine based on what is best for the patient. They rely on us to provide them any new information that may be available on name brand drugs. Now, do some doctors prescribe sometimes based on a relationship with a particular drug rep? Sure, they do. If there are two drugs available that basically do the same thing and will benefit the patient, the doctor will normally prescribe the drug of the rep he has a better relationship with. Also, don’t forget the role of insurance in this picture. Many, many times the doctor is forced to write a particular drug because the insurance company says so. To me, it’s the insurance industry that is the most to blame for skyrocketing health costs. With all that said, the drug sales business is the only industry that is regulated like this. In any other sales jobs, the sales rep is able to do whatever it takes in order to get business. This includes dinners, sporting events, trips, etc. These type of things are strictly forbidden in today’s pharma world.