Industry News:

    Pfizer to cut sales force see Pfizer news release

           Wall street analysts seem to like the decision for Pfizer to cut the sales force by about 2,000.   My experience has been that cutting the sales force, is cutting off sales, thus reducing revenue.   Of course it will be a great cost cutting move and save a considerable amount of money considering a reduction in vehicle fleet cost, employee salaries, excellent healthcare and other benefits to name a few.   However, this will now free up physicians and nurses for other company's representatives to gain access and product discussion.  My experience has been reducing the sales force by attrition.   There is sufficient sales force turnover through retirement and career changes that can reduce a sales force slowly.   One report on the internet stated this would have by years' end. 

          It will be interesting to see if other large and small companies follow Pfizers' path.     

    Cephalon in trouble for improper marketing

            Recent article in The Wall Street Journal reveals the maker of Actiq^® is under investigation by the Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.   The article states that the Attorney General is concerned with Cephalon's marketing practices concerning this highly additive narcotic.   Actiq^® is a lollipop form of a very powerful pain killer fentanyl.  Apparently there are internal marketing memos that reveal the company was pushing off label marketing/use of the drug.   The drug is approved narrowly for cancer pain.   An aggressive company may consider a small market.   Therefore, a company may be over zealous and push for a wider range of pain relief.  One sign of this may be setting sales targets too high.   For instance if the market for cancer pain is $500 million and the sales target is $600 million.  Then one may conclude that is a push for the sales and marketing teams to go outside the approved indication.   Sales representatives may be calling on physicians that do not treat cancer and cancer pain.   Time will tell if that was the case here.

        Different kind of pay/view for pharmaceutical TV ads

            Recent article in The Wall Street Journal discusses how Pharmaceutical companies and the Food & Drug Administration have agreed on the companies paying the FDA for reviewing their TV direct to consumer ads.  This will enable to FDA to hire more reviewers, thus speed the review process and get the ads on TV quicker.   The money would also fund FDA post-marketing adverse reaction reporting programs.   This deal has to be approved by Congress and is expected to take effect late 2007.

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