British drug-maker GlaxoSmithKline says it will stop paying doctors in New Zealand and elsewhere for promoting its products.
It announced on Tuesday night it will also stop funding doctors to attend conferences in a major bid to be more open about its activities globally.
GlaxoSmithKline says it pays New Zealand healthcare professionals less than $250,000 a year for promoting its products to their peers.
New Zealand general manager Anna Stove said doctors and others can also apply for funding to attend international conferences, but fewer than 10 per year in the country would receive it.
Ms Stove said the drug-maker will phase out such payments internationally by 2015 to meet widespread expectations of increased transparency. Instead, it will fund education for doctors and others through unsolicited grants.
The Medical Association and some doctors have welcomed the move. But Medicines New Zealand, which represents drug companies, said current regulations provide adequate control over their activities and there is no cause for concern
