Allergan and Cephalon breach ABPI Code of Practice
Fail to meet the standards of certain clauses of the Code
Allergan Limited and Cephalon (UK) have each breached the ABPI Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry. To highlight these breaches, both are the subject of advertisements in the medical, pharmaceutical and nursing media.
Allergan, a provider of eye care and specialist pharmaceutical products based in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, was ruled to have breached the Code in two cases, after failing to comply with an undertaking not to use data in a manner previously ruled to have been in breach of the Code.
The company was said to have brought discredit upon and reduced confidence in the pharmaceutical industry, breaching Clause 2. It also failed to maintain high standards, breaching Clause 9.1, and failed to comply with an undertaking, breaching Clause 25.
Cephalon, based in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire and a supplier of generic medicines, was also ruled in breach of Clause 2 and Clause 9.1, together with Clauses 1.7, 15.2, 15.9 and 19.1, for providing inappropriate hospitality to delegates it had sponsored to attend a European conference.
Clause 1.7 refers to failing to comply with all applicable codes; Clause 15.2 refers to representatives failing to maintain a high standard of ethical conduct; while Clause 15.9 refers to distributing briefing material, which advocated a course of action likely to breach the Code; and Clause 19.1 refers to providing excessive hospitality.
The Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA) advertises brief details of all cases where companies are ruled in breach of Clause 2 of the Code, who are required to issue a corrective statement or are the subject of a public reprimand.
The advertisements appeared in today’s (24 March) issue of The Nursing Standard and will appear in the BMJ and The Pharmaceutical Journal on 26 March.