• NJ.com, Wall Street Journal, Monday, June 7, 2010 10:58 AM

The Star-Ledger's Susan Todd reports on the trend among pharmaceutical companies to basically shrug off the "whopping" fines they receive for off-label marketing in light of their ability to squeeze more money from their top products.

"Pfizer became something of a poster child after it agreed to pay a record $2.3 billion fine to settle allegations that it illegally promoted a number of its medicines," Todd writes. But she points out that between 1999 and 2004, the company allegedly generated $10 billion alone by selling its seizure drug Neurontin for unapproved uses. It's hardly unique.

"There are very few companies that haven't had their turn in the wheelhouse to get a spanking," says pharmaceutical industry analyst Ira Loss. "I tend to think the pressure put on these salesmen to hit targets and goals leads to misbehavior." Adriane Fugh-Berman, an associate professor at Georgetown University Medical Center, says the practice will continue as long as the profits are greater than the fines.

Jared A. Favole, meanwhile, reports in the Wall Street Journal on the actual amounts of free drug samples -- an entirely legal practice -- that pharmaceutical companies dispensed in 2007, according to documents submitted to Congress. Pfizer gave out 101 million drug samples worth $2.7 billion; Merck dispensed 39 million samples worth about $356 million; Eli Lilly 33 million worth $67 million; Wyeth (which was acquired by Pfizer last year), 52 million worth $64 million; Abbott Laboratories 16 million worth $32 million, and Baxter International 33,000 worth $7 million.

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