The Medicines Australia Code of Conduct guides the promotion of prescription products by pharmaceutical companies.1Each year Medicines Australia publishes a report, from its Code of Conduct Committee, which details all the complaints that have been received about advertising and other promotional activities.
This year's report2differs from previous reports because of increased scrutiny of educational events. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission now requires Medicines Australia to report details of the educational events held or sponsored by member companies. This information is available on the Medicines Australia website (at www.medicinesaustralia.com.au).
Medicines Australia appointed an independent auditor to check that the educational events contained in the reports complied with the Code of Conduct. This resulted in the Medicines Australia Monitoring Committee referring 52 events to the Code of Conduct Committee. As there were only 83 new complaints in 2007-08, educational events account for most of the total.
Table 1 shows 37 cases where at least one breach of the Code of Conduct was found. The majority of cases involved educational events where the hospitality was deemed to be out of proportion to the educational content of the event. The Code of Conduct still applies even if the event is held overseas. These transgressions resulted in a range of fines. A dinner for four specialists in Adelaide attracted a fine of $10 000 while dinner for nine specialists at the Hotel de Paris in Monaco attracted a fine of $50 000. Inappropriately luxurious and extravagant hospitality resulted in one company being fined $175 000.
While most of the promotional activity was directed at prescribers, nurses and pharmacists also attended events which breached the Code of Conduct.
Detailed information about the complaints can be found in the annual report of the Code of Conduct Committee.2
| Table 1
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Breaches of the Code of Conduct July 2007 - June 2008
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Company
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Product or activity
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Sanction imposed by Code of Conduct Committee
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Abbott
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Reductil (sibutramine)
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Withdraw promotional material
$10 000 fine
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Allergan
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Extravagant hospitality
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$175 000 fine
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Amgen
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Extravagant hospitality
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$10 000 fine
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|
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Extravagant hospitality
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$50 000 fine
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AstraZeneca
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Crestor (rosuvastatin)
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Withdraw promotional material (previously found in breach of the Code)
$80 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$10 000 fine
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Baxter
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Extravagant hospitality
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$35 000 fine
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Biogen
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Extravagant hospitality
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$10 000 fine
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Boehringer Ingelheim
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Micardis (telmisartan)
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Withdraw promotional material
$25 000 fine
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CSL
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Extravagant hospitality
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$50 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$40 000 fine
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Device Technologies
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Penthrox (methoxyflurane)
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Withdraw material from website
Corrective letter
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Eli Lilly
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Actos (pioglitazone)
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Corrective letter (already sent)
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GlaxoSmithKline
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Seretide (fluticasone/salmeterol)
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Withdraw detailing aid
Corrective letter
$50 000 fine
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Seretide (fluticasone/salmeterol)
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Withdraw promotional material
$50 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$20 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$100 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$90 000 fine
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Hospira
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Eligard (leuprorelin)
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Withdraw promotional material
Corrective letter
$50 000 fine
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Ipsen
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Extravagant hospitality
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$30 000 fine
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Nycomed
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Extravagant hospitality
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$70 000 fine reduced to $35 000 on appeal
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Extravagant hospitality
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$60 000 fine
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Octapharma
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Octagam (immunoglobulin)
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Withdraw promotional material
Corrective letter
$50 000 fine
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Pfizer
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Lipitor (atorvastatin)
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Withdraw promotional material
$50 000 fine
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Crestor (rosuvastatin)
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Corrective letter
Company staff to comply with the Code
$200 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$20 000 fine
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Pharmion
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Extravagant hospitality
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$25 000 fine
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Roche
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Media releases
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Remove media releases from website
$60 000 fine reduced to $40 000 on appeal
$40 000 fine
$20 000 fine increased to $30 000 on appeal
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Sanofi-aventis
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Actonel (risedronate)
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Withdraw detailing aid
Corrective letter
$100 000 fine reduced to $80 000 on appeal
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Schering-Plough
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Olmetec (olmesartan)
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Withdraw promotional material
Corrective letter
Corrective advertisement
Amend minimum product information
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Olmetec (olmesartan)
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Corrective advertisement
$50 000 fine
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Servier
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Extravagant hospitality
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$20 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$60 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$50 000 fine
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Solvay
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Extravagant hospitality
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$20 000 fine
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Extravagant hospitality
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$80 000 fine
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Wyeth
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Extravagant hospitality
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$35 000 fine
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