US Justice Dept warns drugmakers on corruption

The USA's Department of Justice Department plans to focus on prosecuting people in the pharmaceutical industry who try to bribe foreign officials for preferential treatment of their products, according to a senior official, reported by the Reuters news agency.

The Department has been examining fraud and corruption in the health care system as part of the overall administration of US President Barack Obama's drive to overhaul the system and reduce skyrocketing costs.

Lanny Breuer, Assistant Attorney General for the DoJ's criminal division, issued the warning that the agency would be scrutinizing dealings between companies selling their products overseas and foreign officials. "In the course of those interactions, the industry must resist short-cuts," Breuer said to a forum on pharmaceutical regulation and compliance. It must resist the temptation and the invitation to pay off foreign officials for the sake of profit," he said.

He cautioned companies against offering foreign officials things like cash, gifts, charitable donations, travel, meals, entertainment, speaking fees and consultant arrangements, Reuters noted. Mr Breuer said that the Department was currently investigating more than 120 corruption cases on a variety of issues.