Archive for October 2009
Abnormal practice of relationship between manufacturers of medicines and some part of medical community has become usual in Russia. - Putin
12/10/2009 by admin.
The Prime-minister Vladimir Putin defined the situation when pharmaceutical giants pay health professionals for prescribing their medicines impossible to tolerate. At the meeting on development of pharmaceutical industry he noted, that “sometimes even the prescription forms, printed by supplier firms, are being used”. According to the Prime-minister, during the last decade “obviously abnormal practice of relationship between manufacturers of medicines, including foreign ones, and some part of medical community” has become usual in Russia. The Prime-minister noted that pharmaceutical companies have the right to advertise their products, but they have to do this in a civilized way and be fully compliant with universally recognized ethical norms and the Russian legislation. Vladimir Putin also emphasized that pharmaceutical manufacturers “provide sponsorship for corporate events, various seminars, including overseas seminars with trips to warm seas”, which involve thousands of specialists. “In fact the lobbying systems, disposed in depth, are being created or have been already created to lobby for the interests of large-scale pharmaceutical companies, and this vicious practice should to be stopped”, - the Prime-minister declared. The head of the government thinks that not only legislative bans for such incomes are needed, but also the introduction of tougher, stricter norms of medical ethics is needed. Furthermore, according to the prime-minister, “we should get rid of so called pharmaceutical representatives, who work in health facilities”, and “the expert committees on new medicines should not employ specialists who accept monetary payments” from manufacturers of these medicines.
9/10/09
http://www.finmarket.ru/z/nws/news.asp?id=1304854
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GlaxoSmithKline sees orders for swine flu vaccine soar
07/10/2009 by admin.
Britain’s biggest pharmaceutical company today disclosed a big boost in orders for its swine flu vaccine as governments around the world build stockpiles ahead of the winter.
GlaxoSmithKline, headed by chief executive Andrew Witty, revealed that the number of orders for its H1N1 vaccine had jumped by 50% to more than 400m since August, putting the company on course for a windfall worth about £3bn by the end of the year, according to City analysts.
Witty has said that each vaccine will sell for close to £5 a shot, although the boost to GSK’s top line ignores production and research and development costs, so profits will be lower. But Kevin Wilson at Citigroup said that “pandemic sales should lead to potential earnings surprises through the fourth quarter of 2009 to the second quarter of 2010 when overlaid with the rest of the business”.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/oct/06/glaxosmithkline-swine-flu-vaccine-orders
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October’s DTB
06/10/2009 by admin.
The October 2009 issue of Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin (DTB) contains an editorial and three articles. The editorial discusses the use of generic and trade names in current prescribing. The issue also includes a review of the role of
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