Author: Lynne Taylor

The UK government has warned Members of Parliament who want the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to conduct “quick and dirty” evaluations of all new drugs at launch that such an approach might not stand up in a court of law.

The public image of pharmaceutical companies is not as bad as some people within the industry believe, and in fact the industry may well be “shooting itself in the foot” by perpetuating the belief that it is generally poorly regarded, even though new research shows this is not the case, according to the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry’s corporate affairs director, David Lewis.

Prescription drug ads have prompted nearly one-third of Americans to ask their doctor about an advertised medicine, and 44% of those who have talked to their physician about an advertised drug received a prescription for that medicine, according to new research.

US President George W Bush has called on Congress to act swiftly to put “an end to the illegal sale of highly-addictive prescription drugs on the internet.”

Retail drug prices in India are set to fall 5%-7% as a result of the reductions in excise and customs duties included the Union (federal) Budget for 2008-9 announced by Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram on February 29.