Pharma pours millions into the NHS for non-research work—but we don’t know what the money is being spent on (23 October 2024)

Summary

An analysis by The BMJ has found that pharmaceutical companies pay tens of millions of pounds to the NHS each year without the public being told what the payments are for. The findings have led to calls for a shake-up of current transparency rules so that patients can see why payments are being made to the NHS.

Pharmaceutical companies paid £156m to NHS trusts in England between 2015 and 2022, according to new analysis of the Disclosure UK database. The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) database requires participating companies to disclose cash payments and other benefits in kind to healthcare professionals and organisations. Even though the scheme has been lauded as one of the best among its industry run peers in Europe, The BMJ has uncovered widespread confusion about the intended purpose of the payments. For example, if any of these payments are for “educational” purposes that could be linked to the promotion of pharmaceutical products.