GlaxoSmithKline to stop paying doctors for drug promotion

Photo by Flickr user Ian Wilson

Doctors will no longer be paid to speak on behalf of GlaxoSmithKline and its products, the British drug maker said Tuesday. In addition, the pharmaceutical company said, the pay of its sales representatives will not be tied to the number of prescriptions written by doctors. Instead, the compensation would be tied to quality of services the reps provide.

The ending of two controversial industry practices comes after a recent, continuing investigation into GlaxoSmithKline in China, where the country’s authorities alleged the drug maker bribed officials up to $500 million to increase drug sales. The corruption probe, which began in July, dropped the company’s third-quarter China sales 61 percent.