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Alcon alleged to have bribed doctors
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Leading eye care products maker Alcon is alleged to have given doctors bribes disguised as research fees or grants through post clinical trial research programs in China in order to boost intraocular lens sales.
Alcon, a wholly owned unit of Swiss-based pharmaceutical giant Novartis AG, offered research fees totaling 1.4 million yuan (US$229,000) in 2012 through a “Patient Experience Survey” program, according to material from an anonymous whistleblower, the 21st Century Business Herald reported yesterday.
The Alcon “PES” program is alleged to offer “research fees” to at least 200 hospitals, including the Beijing 301 Military Hospital, Peking Union Medical College Hospital and Shanghai’s Ruijin Hospital.
“Alcon does not tolerate activities that are not in compliance with the laws and regulations in the markets where we operate,” the company said in an e-mailed statement yesterday.
Alcon said it conducted an internal review of the program which started in 2012 and found that employees acted in accordance with the appropriate rules, regulations and internal standard operating procedures.
The “PES” program was carried out by a contracted research organization, H&J, and the fees varied from 200 yuan to 500 yuan for each case, depending on the six product categories that Alcon was meant to study in China, the newspaper said, citing an H&J insider.
The six products, including Restor and Toric, are implants that treat eye diseases such as cataracts and presbyopia.
Officials from Ruijin Hospital clarified yesterday it didn’t participate in the program and that none of its doctors got bribes from Alcon.
“Our eye department applied to participate in the program but we were disqualified,” said Ding Yanmin, a hospital official. “The newspaper didn’t confirm with our hospital on the issue before publishing the story.”
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