Restructuring Message For French Drug Industry

France's pharmaceutical industry could achieve major improvements in productivity, notably in the marketing sector, according to a report by the A Prime consultancy. Its report notes that, in theory at least, the number of medical detailmen (or medical visitors as they are called in France) employed by drugmakers could be halved.

A Prime estimates that the French pharmaceutical industry devotes 9 billion francs ($1.67 billion) each year - or more than 11% of sales - to medical detailmen.

The study suggests that drug companies keen to maintain their margins could easily reduce this cost by 25% to 30% within two to three years, partly by not replacing the 7% of medical detailmen who leave each year or by freezing salaries at a time when the market has contracted, or by cutting perks.