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Fewer drug reps mean shorter visits with physicians

NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted April 11, 2011

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Drugmakers continued to cut their pharmaceutical sales forces last year, and the amount of time the remaining drug reps are spending with physicians has fallen since 2006, according to a March report by SK&A, a physician profiling firm.

The country's top 10 drugmakers cut their drug rep sales forces by 14% from 2009 to 2010, according to the SK&A's "2010 Sales Rep Visits and Product Detailing Report." Though 28% of detailer visits to internists ended in less than five minutes in 2006, that figure rose to 43% in 2010. Among specialists, the proportion of drug rep visits done within five minutes jumped from 15% to 31%. Sampling also fell. Among physicians categorized as "nonprescribers" of a drug, the percentage who did not take samples or brochures rose from 27% in 2006 to 40% in 2010.

The data are based on an ongoing survey of 2,480 physicians and other health professionals.

Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2011/04/11/prbf0411.htm.

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