Merck & Co/Banyu: Correction

In an article published on October 11, titled Merck & Co’s Banyu unit warned about paying Japanese doctors for attending conferences, it was wrongly stated that Banyu had paid out 1 billion yen to 325 doctors who attended medical seminars organized by the company with regard to its diabetes drug Januvia (sitagliptin). The figure should have been 10 million yen ($120,000).

We apologize for the error and any confusion this may have created. The story was based on one published in Pharma Japan, which actually stated  - also wrongly -  the payment amount as 10 billion yen. The Pharma Letter web site now carries the corrected version.