Tucson's University Medical Center and drug money ...

The drug mafia (or Big Pharma, the pharmaceutical industry, whatever you wish to call them) buy the medical profession much the same way they buy elected and appointed government officials.

The Arizona Daily Star reports that:

A new policy has been drafted that would stop the free meals, gifts, trips and payments at the University of Arizona College of Medicine.

The title of the article may be misleading. It implies that this change is a done deal. But within the article one gets the impression that UA doctors may fight an effort that requires that they give up their free lunch, literally. According to the article the revised policy will be presented to the UA medical faculty. Now we'll see if the University of Arizona chooses integrity over money. What's your guess?

A few stats that should raise your blood pressure:

Pharmaceutical companies spend up to $18 billion a year — more than $13,000 per doctor — persuading doctors to prescribe their drugs, with overwhelming emphasis on the newest and costliest. This pays for some 60 million visits a year by salespeople — known as "drug reps" — laden with all manner of food, gifts, sponsorships and other tokens.

They do it because it works. Study after study shows that while doctors deny any influence from all the wooing, it does significantly increase the likelihood that they'll prescribe the drugs being pushed, even if evidence shows they may not be the best or most cost-effective.

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Arizona Daily Star: UMC to loosen drug reps' grip --New policy would ban doctors' perks that cost patients by Carla McClain