Minnesota Law Sheds Light on Drug Companies

[babylonsister]

Minnesota Law Sheds Light on Drug Companies
by Martiga Lohn

A groundbreaking Minnesota law is shining a rare light into the big money that drug companies spend on members of state advisory panels who help select which drugs are used in Medicaid programs for the poor and disabled.

Those panels, most comprised of physicians, hold great sway over the $28 billion spent on drugs each year for Medicaid patients nationwide. But aside from Minnesota, only Vermont and Maine require drug companies to report payments to doctors for lectures, consulting, research and other services. 0822 06

An Associated Press review of records in Minnesota found that a doctor and a pharmacist on the eight-member state panel simultaneously got big checks - more than $350,000 to one - from pharmaceutical companies for speaking about their products.

The two members said the money did not influence their work on the panel, and the lack of recorded votes in meeting minutes makes it difficult to track any link between the payments and policy.

But ethical experts said the Minnesota data raise questions about the possibility of similar financial ties between the pharmaceutical industry and advisers in other states.

“In the absence of disclosure laws, there’s certainly no way to know,” said Jack Hoadley, a research professor specializing in Medicaid at Georgetown University in Washington. “There are a lot of physicians in general who have at least some contract or grant funding out of pharmaceutical companies, and additional (who) do speaking engagements.”

more...

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/08/22/3343/

[spanone]

1. K&R

[PA Democrat]

2. And that ONE $350,000 check to ONE member of the panel in ONE state

is passed on to we consumers in the form of higher drug prices. How many other advisory panels and policy makers in how many other states are getting checks? Any wonder we pay more for our drugs here than in other countries?

[babylonsister]

3. And yup, their opinions are NOT affected by that 'bribe'. Pleeze. nt

[HysteryDiagnosis]

4. Man oh man that must be a really great drug, I wish I knew what it

was cuz of course, I would "ask my doctor".

[mzmolly]

5. Conflict of interest in medicine are very common

unfortunately. I'm glad a light is being shed on this. Thanks.

[bobthedrummer]

6. .