Healthy Skepticism Library item: 4767

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Journal Article

Lurie P, Tran T, Wolfe SM, Goodman R.
Violations of exhibiting and FDA rules at an American Psychiatric Association annual meeting.
J Public Health Policy 2005 Dec; 26:(4):389-99

Abstract:

We conducted a cross-sectional study of all exhibit booths for the 24 pharmaceutical companies at the 2002 American Psychiatric Association (APA) convention. We collected and categorized one of each item distributed by the companies at each booth. A total of 268 items were collected from 24 companies (median=8). The most common categories of items were “reprints or pamphlets” (37%) and “noneducational gifts” (27%), including music CDs and invitations to dinners and museums. There were a total of 16 violations of the APA’s own exhibit rules: eight companies had one violation and two companies had four violations. Four companies engaged in FDA-prohibited off-label promotion; one also violated the APA code. Over half of all companies (54%) were in violation of either APA rules or FDA regulations. The APA’s voluntary code has failed to adequately reduce inappropriate promotional activity at the annual APA meeting.

Keywords:
Congresses/ethics* Congresses/legislation & jurisprudence Cross-Sectional Studies Data Collection Drug Industry/legislation & jurisprudence* Drug Labeling/legislation & jurisprudence Exhibits* Gift Giving/ethics Humans Marketing/legislation & jurisprudence* Psychiatry/ethics* Questionnaires Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Societies, Medical/ethics* United States United States Food and Drug Administration