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Pharmaceutical firms' "compliance support programmes": a comeback

"Compliance support programmes" run directly or indirectly by pharmaceutical firms should not be legalised but quite simply prohibited, in patients’ best interests.

There is no scientific rationale for "compliance" or "patient support" programmes piloted by the pharmaceutical firms. These are a purely commercial move which is utterly absurd due to inevitable conflicts of interest: how is it possible for a firm to act as both judge and judged, and be capable of explaining to a patient that it is better to halt treatment or switch to a drug manufactured by a competitor?

In January 2007, in the face of almost unanimous hostility, the French government caved in and refrained from forcing through legislation to make pharma companies compliance support programmes legal.

But la revue Prescrire, the Medicines in Europe Forum and many others are continuing to campaign and will be paying close attention to the French Senate proposal on these programmes announced for autumn 2007.

For further information, go to www.prescrire.org which will have the latest updates on this issue over the coming months (click here for the Medicines in Europe Forum.).

©Prescrire September 2007

Source: "Programmes 'd'accompagnement' des patients par les firmes pharmaceutiques : non merci !" Prescrire 2007.

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