Dive Brief:
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Bristol-Myers Squibb says it has halted "certain initiatives" related to its sales practices in China.
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The company made the comment after Reuters inquired about social media reports saying the drugmaker had curbed its incentives to Chinese doctors who prescribed its medicines.
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BMS agreed in October to pay $14 million to settle bribery allegations raised by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Dive Insight:
The Chinese market is of obvious importance to all major pharma companies. In its October settlement, the SEC claimed BMS' joint Chinese venture provided doctors and other healthcare providers cash payments for prescribing BMS products.
The October settlement was considerably smaller than the $490 million fine GlaxoSmithKline got from the SEC in 2014 for alleged bribes, but it made it clear the SEC is paying ongoing attention to business relationships between drugmakers and the Chinese market. That reality is forcing pharma companies to change some practices.
Reuters, following up on Chinese social media reports that BMS had cut speaker fees and expense payments to doctors, asked the drugmaker for comment. In an email, BMS told Reuters it had "voluntarily stopped certain initiatives in China" as it reviewed its business there.
The Financial Times, citing unnamed industry figures, said BMS was cutting entertainment expenses for doctors and payments for them to speak at medical conferences.