Abstract
Sanofi and Novartis are the latest drug companies to be investigated by Chinese authorities after claims of unethical sales practices by Western drug companies in China. Last month, police in China detained four GlaxoSmithKline managers and an AstraZeneca sales representative for alleged kickbacks to doctors and hospitals that prescribed or purchased the companies’ drugs. Beijing municipal authorities now are looking into allegations that Sanofi paid bribes totaling about $275,000 to 503 doctors, according to the state-owned news agency Xinhua. An anonymous whistleblower said the bribes were given in the guise of clinical research grants to doctors at 79 hospitals in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Hangzhou in 2007, Xinhua reports. Sanofi says the allegations relate to postmarket drug surveillance during which companies monitor the performance of a drug after approval. The Chinese investigation intends to look for lists of patient names and medical reports for these clinical research programs. Meanwhil...
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