An international drug company made a hit list of doctors who had to be “neutralised” or discredited because they criticised the painkiller Vioxx, a now-withdrawn anti-arthritis drug the pharmaceutical giant produced.
Staff at US company Merck & Co emailed each other about the list of doctors who were mainly researchers and academics. The email, which came out in the Federal Court in Melbourne as part of a class action against the drug company, included the words “neutralise”, “neutralised” or “discredit” against some of the doctors’ names.
It is also alleged the company used intimidation tactics against critical researchers, including dropping hints it would stop funding to institutions and claims it interfered with academic appointments.
“We may need to seek them out and destroy them where they live,” a Merck employee wrote, according to an email excerpt read to the court.
Merck & Co and its Australian subsidiary, Merck, Sharpe and Dohme, are being sued for compensation by more than 1000 Australians, who claim they suffered heart attacks or strokes as a result of Vioxx.
Merck last year settled thousands of lawsuits in the US over the effects of Vioxx for $US4.85billion ($7.14 billion) but made no admission of guilt.
The drug was launched in 1999 and at its height of popularity was used by 80 million people worldwide because it did not cause stomach problems as did traditional anti-inflammatory drugs.
[Source]
Chapter: Health :: 1 July 2009
