Advert Britannia – Case AUTH/3355/5/20

The Appeal Board required Britannia to be audited for paying health professionals for the preparation time when this was not warranted nor required as the same material or essentially the same material was reused by speakers, not having a contract for some of the engagements, not providing full information to the PMCPA about the arrangements for speakers at meetings outside the UK and arrangements for investigator led clinical trials which failed to consider patient safety and have the relevant approval processes in place. Britannia was previously ruled in breach of the following clauses of the 2019 Code:

 

Clause 2 - Bringing discredit upon, and reducing confidence in, the pharmaceutical industry

Clause 9.1 - Failing to maintain high standards

Clause 13.4 - Failing to comply with the requirements for non-interventional studies

Clause 18.1 - Paying health professionals fees which did not reflect fair market value

Clause 23.1 - Engaging health professionals in other than genuine consultancy arrangements

Clause 25.2 - Failing to approve and supervise non-interventional studies

 

When considering the report of the audit and Britannia’s response, the Appeal Board decided that Britannia should be publicly reprimanded for its failure to have the necessary control of its activities with regard to compliance with the Code and its failure to provide a third party report when first requested. The Appeal Board also decided that Britannia should be re-audited in June/July 2022.

Advert June 2022