look news india
The central government on Tuesday tightened the noose on drug manufacturing companies. Announcing a uniform code of conduct for marketing of medicines, the government has said that no pharma company will give any gift to any doctor or send doctors and their family members abroad in the name of workshops and seminars. Staying in other cities and expensive hotels will cost money.
However, it has been said in the new guidelines that if a doctor is a speaker in a workshop or seminar then he will be exempted. The Department of Pharmaceuticals has shared the copy of Uniform Code for Pharmaceutical Marketing Practice (UCPMP) 2024 with all the pharmaceutical associations for strict compliance. Along with this, the department has also directed the pharmaceutical associations to form a Code of Conduct Committee to investigate complaints related to any violation of the Uniform Code. The UCPMP 2024 Guidelines also provide guidelines for handling complaints related to violations of the Code.
The UCPMP 2024 guidelines state that pharmaceutical companies will not give gifts, money or any inducement to any doctor in the name of drug marketing. If any violation is found then the Pharma Association will take strict action against the pharmaceutical companies. The guidelines state that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of all pharma companies will be responsible for compliance with the UCPMP 2024.
A news channel, quoting a senior doctor included in the Ethics Committee of the Medical Council of India (MCI), has said in its report that pharmaceutical companies are not taking doctors abroad to sell their products in the name of conferences and workshops. Taking them to gifts and giving them free drug samples, they spend a lot of money. This increases the cost of medicines and ultimately burdens the patient with higher costs of medicines and medical equipment, which must be stopped.
According to the UCPMP guidelines, “No gift shall be provided or offered by any pharmaceutical company or its agents such as distributors, wholesalers, retailers for the personal benefit of any health care professional or his family members.”