Pharmaceutical firm accused of bribing doctors in Tenerife
The High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands (TSJC) has referred evidence to Tenerife’s criminal courts over an alleged scheme involving a pharmaceutical company and doctors working for the Canary Islands Health Service (SCS).
According to the findings, the company is suspected of offering cash payments and all-expenses-paid trips to medical congresses in exchange for doctors prescribing its medicines and vaccines.
The suspicions first came to light during an employment dispute over the dismissal of a sales representative. The company accused the employee of breaching an exclusivity contract by also working as a driving school instructor, a fact uncovered by a private detective. While the court upheld her dismissal, judges also highlighted evidence of wider misconduct involving the pharmaceutical firm and medical staff.
The TSJC believes there are signs of possible bribery offences, with up to ten people implicated, including the former employee, laboratory staff, two doctors, and the owner of a travel agency. In addition, seven people could face charges of giving false testimony, among them the two doctors alleged to have received the benefits.
Court documents reportedly include a list of Tenerife-based doctors suspected of being paid to prescribe the company’s products. Evidence suggests that through the dismissed employee and the travel agency owner, doctors were “financed, incentivised and paid” to recommend the firm’s vaccines and medicines.
During the employment trial, several colleagues of the former sales representative testified that doctors across Spain were routinely offered trips and congress places, which they described as being done “semi-legally.” One witness contradicted this, insisting the only benefits given were books.
Doctors themselves gave mixed testimony. A rehabilitation specialist at the University Hospital of the Canary Islands (HUC) admitted attending a 2015 congress funded by the company, saying he also regularly dined with the sales representative at the firm’s expense. Another specialist at La Candelaria Hospital claimed he received around €3,000 a year to cover courses and conferences.
Recordings presented in court revealed discussions about doctors wanting payments “under the table,” with references to cash-filled envelopes and instructions to alter invoice dates after some vaccines were suspended nationally. One conversation suggested that doctors were paid around €30 per vaccine prescribed, with annual figures of up to 4,000 vaccines and 50 related medicines prescribed monthly.
The sales representative later claimed harassment at work, which allegedly led to depression and anxiety requiring psychiatric treatment. However, the company’s investigation concluded with a change of manager rather than disciplinary measures.
Ultimately, the TSJC upheld her dismissal for breaching her exclusivity contract, though the court ruled she should receive around €5,000 owed for mileage expenses.
The case now moves forward in the criminal courts, where investigators will determine whether charges of bribery, document falsification, and false testimony will be filed.
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