Physician Payment Sunshine: Pharmaceutical Payments in the UK

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) recently published aggregate totals of payments made last year to doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals as part of a drive towards greater industry transparency, reported by PMLiVE.  Transparency became a requirement when ABPI members voted in 2011 to amend its Code of Practice to help increase transparency of working practices between pharma and healthcare professionals and increase trust.   

The obligation covers payments relating to the sponsorship of NHS staff to attend medical education events, training and speaker fees.  All companies will also publish the number of healthcare professionals who have received these payments. 

The report showed that Pharma companies in the UK paid healthcare professionals £40m in sponsorship and support during 2012.  The £40m figure is an estimate based on information received from, or published by, 35 out of the top 44 companies based on UK sales in 2012.  When such information is unavailable, the ABPI said it has taken the average spend for a company of similar size and added this to the total figures.  This compares to figures in the US, where big pharma was found to have paid US doctors $150m in the first eight months of 2011. 

ABPI’s CEO, Stephen Whitehead: “Full transparency about these relationships is right and appropriate and we have taken the lead to make this a reality.  “By publishing these figures industry’s aim is to ensure these vital relationships are open and transparent.”  He also explained the need for pharma payments to healthcare professionals, saying it was “right” that they were reimbursed fairly for their time.  “These figures also show another way in which the pharmaceutical industry adds value to the NHS by supporting training and development and medical education,” he added. 

Interestingly, the report comes at a time when ten pharma companies have been
“found guilty of breaching the ABPI Code at a urology meeting in Ireland last year,” reported the PharmaTimes. 

The companies include: Pfizer, Orion, Ferring, Astellas, Baxter, Ipsen, Allergan, Takeda, Recordati and Janssen.   

“The complaint, brought by a group of NHS health professionals, criticised the companies who were all supporting the annual meeting organised by the Irish Society of Urology (ISU), which was held in Belfast in September 2012.  The complainants said that the first page of the scientific programme, which was handed out to NHS staff attending the event, featured photographs of the very luxurious, five-star venue and nearby attractions, which they felt placed “undue emphasis on non-scientific aspects” of the meeting.”   

The welcome message on the first page of programme also read: ‘The social aspect of this meeting is extremely important and the two evening events promise great enjoyment.  The unique opportunity to have our gala dinner in Stormont was one that we couldn’t pass over!’  Most of a second day of the meeting was dedicated to playing golf and leisure activities as clearly marked in the programme, the health professionals said. 

The complainants alleged that the pharma companies that supported this meeting seriously breached the Code on the grounds of “excessive hospitality”.  The PMCPA said that it considered that the scientific content was “not unreasonable”, adding that it had consisted of one and a half days of education.  Considering all circumstances, the PMCPA panel said it appeared that the pharma companies listed on the back page of the programme had supported all the arrangements for the two-day meeting held at a luxurious venue with golf and a gala dinner, and found that the impression this gave was “unacceptable”.

“The Panel also considered that purchasing a ticket for the gala dinner was inappropriate, saying the educational content of that day (which lasted for 3 hours 40 minutes in the morning) did not justify the gala dinner in the evening, which appeared to be a social event; high standards had not been met, and breaches of the Code were again ruled.  But the PMCPA stopped short of finding these firms guilty of bringing the pharma industry into disrepute, the most damaging breach available.”