France's Igas attacks effect of drug promo

A report sent to the French government by the country's social affairs inspectorate, the IGAS, has said that the promotional campaigns of pharmaceutical companies through medical visiting cost the nation dear and "favor the global expansion of prescriptions."

The IGAS is calling for nothing less than an "organized commercial disarmament," with a reduction of over 50% of the spending devoted by the pharmaceutical industry to drug product promotion. The report claims that the industry spends at least 3.0 billion euros ($4.32 billion) on promotion, of which 75% goes on medical visiting and giving information on products to doctors. There are some 23,000 medical visitors in France at present.

The IGAS argues that this system represents a cost of over 25,000 euros per general practitioner a year, financed in the end by society in terms of drug prices. It adds that, despite a recent quality chart system for medical visiting, the deficiencies have not been corrected and visits "have a clear influence on prescriptions."