Submitted by John Stauber on
"Documents released yesterday in the case of a drug company
whistle-blower shed light on how extensively doctors were
involved in promoting unapproved uses of a Warner-Lambert
drug, Neurontin. Warner-Lambert paid dozens of doctors tens of thousands of dollars each to speak to other physicians about how Neurontin, an epilepsy drug, could be prescribed for more
than a dozen other medical uses that had not been approved
by the Food and Drug Administration. The top speaker for
Neurontin, Dr. B. J. Wilder, a former professor of neurology at the University of Florida, received more than $300,000 for speeches given from 1994 to 1997, according to a court filing. Six other doctors, including some from top medical schools, received more than $100,000 each."