LONDON, Jan 5 (APM) - The UK’s pharma trade body has hit out at the British Medical Journal's claims that English clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) did not declare hundreds of payments from drug companies, branding this an ‘inaccurate depiction’.
In an open letter to the journal, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI)’s chief Mike Thompson said: “I am disappointed to read a BMJ article that inaccurately depicts the work of the pharmaceutical industry in the UK”.
The article claims that CCGs in England - responsible for the planning and commissioning of healthcare services for their local area - have accepted hundreds of payments from drug companies worth more than 3.7 million pounds which they have not disclosed publicly. It said publicly declared payments include tickets to top sports matches and a Beyoncé concert. (APMMA 56281)
Thompson criticised the BMJ’s accompanying press release advertising the article as “even more concerning” and accused the journal of fuelling fake news.
“The press release sent out by the BMJ to publicise the article was grossly misleading in its portrayal of the facts, leading respected national media to wrongly claim this research showed, ‘Pharmaceutical giants have bought tickets to sports matches and pop concerts’,” he said.
“Yet the BMJ must have known that these were from a catering company, a property company and a University - a point not made clear in their press release. Sadly, this is how fake news gets created.”
Thompson also accused the authors of “trying to marshal arguments to support their point of view”, noting the article states that three quarters of funding received from the pharma industry was for education and training events.
“It is clear that the authors of this research philosophically disagree with this type of funding,” he said.
However, he stressed that, for many doctors, nurses and other NHS employees, continuing medical education may not be possible without industry support, and asked “is strictly regulated support for continuing professional development better than limited learning opportunities for NHS staff?”
The industry is going through a period of significant technological advances, he added, noting that strictly regulated scientific dialogue is crucial to impart expertise to the NHS so patients may benefit from it.
Industry code
Thompson added that the ABPI’s code of practice forbids the industry from providing gifts, a fact he said the BMJ knows. The code sets very clear guidelines on appropriate interactions and collaborations between the pharma industry and healthcare organisations and professionals, and reflects laws beyond just the UK and Europe, he said.“Yet this article talks about the ‘pharmaceutical gift cycle’ with no references, leading us to conclude that this [is] an outdated perception,” he continued. “There are also stringent rules governing the types of sponsorship for events, meetings and training, a fact that the BMJ reporting fails to acknowledge.”
He also said the research should have drawn a clearer distinction between the pharma industry and the actions of other private sector companies and public sector institutions such as universities, since the report “conflates the two, which is unhelpful”.
Thompson went on to reprimand the BMJ article for failing to take into account the work going on among all healthcare stakeholders - including industry - to improve transparency for patients.
“In recent years we have seen the development of Disclosure UK, the pharmaceutical industry’s disclosure database; the strengthening of NHS England guidance on conflicts of interest, and the refreshing of guidance from multiple professional bodies, including the General Medical Council, and Royal Colleges to support increased openness and transparency,” he said.
“I hope that when the full findings of this research [are] published all of these initiatives are taken into account.”
nm/clg
TRY APM Market Access AND GET ACCESS TO THE FULL CONTENT
Interviews with KOLs/senior executives amongst the Regulators, Payers, Health, Medical & Pharmaceutical organisations
Events coverage with a unique focus on Market Access & sustainability of healthcare systems
6 European bureaus : Berlin, Brussels, London, Madrid, Milan & Paris
Ask for a Free trial and get access to the latest stories
Our coverage includes:
- Health Care
- Market Access
- HTA – policies & practices
- European medicine regulations
- Drug safety issues
- Pricing & Reimbursement
- International medicines agencies
If you are a Payer, Pharmaceutical or Consulting professional our premium data will keep you informed on the regulatory, pricing, market access and cost-effectiveness issues that impact all stakeholders.
REQUEST
an initial 10 day temporary access of APM Market Access.
