Medical devices cos asked to adopt uniform marketing code

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New Delhi: The government has asked all medical devices associations to adopt a uniform code for marketing practices similar to the one for pharmaceuticals companies, prohibiting them from organising workshops abroad for healthcare professionals and offering them hotel stay, expensive cuisine or monetary grants.

As part of its bid to check unethical practices in the pharma industry, the Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) has asked medical devices companies to upload the Uniform Code for Marketing Practices in Medical Devices (UCMPMD) 2024 on their website along with the detailed procedure for lodging of complaints with link to the UCMPMD portal of the department.

It also asked companies to constitute an Ethics Committee for Marketing Practices in Medical Devices (ECMPMD).

“Very welcome and long awaited,” said Rajiv Nath, forum coordinator at the Association of Indian Medical Devices Industry (AIMED). “It (the code) is nicely tweaked for medical devices separately from the code for the pharmaceutical industry.”

According to the DoP notice, in exercise of the powers conferred by Para 14.1 of the UCMPMD, the department requires disclosure from medical devices companies of particulars related to distribution of evaluation samples and expenses incurred on continuing medical education, continuing professional development, conferences, workshops, trainings, seminars, etc.

Earlier this year, the government had notified a Uniform Code for Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices (UCPMP) for pharma companies, prohibiting them from organising workshops abroad for healthcare professionals or offering them hotel stay, expensive cuisine or monetary grants.