UK NHS bosses face the sack over links to drug firms
British Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has announced measures to crack down on senior National Health Service (NHS) staffs who receive gifts and hospitality from pharmaceutical companies.
Senior NHS personnel who receive such benefits and bonuses from drug companies will have to declare all of them or face dismissal and the threat of jail.
UK hospitals and General Practitioner (GP) groups will be required to keep a register of hospitality and gifts from pharmaceutical firms to health service staff, the Telegraph reported.
The British health secretary’s decision follows a Telegraph report of “disturbing” evidence of senior NHS directors getting thousands of pounds and taking on expensive trips by firms lobbying to get their drugs used.
The so-called “Sunshine rule” will be mandatory from next year and any member of staff who fails to declare full details of perks they receive will face disciplinary action, the report added.
If senior medical staff are found guilty of wrongdoing such as for accepting gifts or luxury foreign trips in exchange for influencing the NHS to buy particular products they could be prosecuted under the Bribery Act, which can result in unlimited fines and up to 10 years in jail.
The NHS in England buys £7 billion of drugs each year, meaning that the taxpayer-funded health service is a lucrative business opportunity for drug companies and manufacturers of medical devices and equipment.
However, a report earlier this year found huge variations in the amounts different hospitals pay for particular items.
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