Table 1 Control systems for prescription medicine advertising
From: Ethical pharmaceutical promotion and communications worldwide: codes and regulations
IFPMA affiliated industry codes of practice | Independent local industry codes of practice | Professional bodies’ codes of practice | Regulatory authority activities | Legal actions | Company standards | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Description | National codes incorporate and expand on the IFPMA Code | National codes, developed independently | International or national medical, pharmacy, and nursing bodies have professional behavior codes. Employers may also have codes of conduct | Regulatory authority interprets and applies law and regulations. Can include pre-approval and post-hoc enforcement | Possible breaches of laws and regulation pursued through court action | Companies have codes of conduct and internal compliance and audit organizations to enforce them |
Applicability | International pharmaceutical member companies wherever they operate. Includes local companies in a few countries | Local companies that belong to the sponsoring trade association or have agreed to comply with the Code | Applied nationally by the professional body | All sectors within the scope of the legislation. Applied nationally | All sectors within the scope of the legislation. Applied nationally | All countries where the company does business |
Comment | National codes are often detailed and are subject to national laws and regulations. Some countries embrace code based actions more readily than others | Variable in scope and application | Professional codes may include requirements concerning interactions with commercial organizations | Some regulatory authorities are more active than others | Actions may be brought by government bodies or competitor companies. Some countries resort to legal action more readily than others | Internal standards are usually broader in scope than external codes and legislation |