Fraud Investigation Of Texas Kids Mental Health Program

The Dallas Morning News reports that Texas state officials have suspended a program called the Children's Medication Algorithm Project over concerns of conflicts of interest between researchers and pharma companies pushing to have their drugs included on the influential list. CMAP is the kid brother of the infamous and deeply-conflicted Texas Medication Algorithm Project, aimed at adults with mental health issues and designed to determine what drugs should be used in state mental health programs and in what order. TMAP has been widely used across the country by other states' mental health programs. TMAP and its pharma sponsors are the subject of at least one lawsuit by state officials and there have been allegations of fraud. Looks like that may be happening on the kiddie program as well:

"At most, the suspension indicates that state investigators fear fraud has occurred. At the least, it reflects nationwide unease with potential conflicts of interest between leading medical researchers and the pharmaceutical firms that fund much of their work.

"Publicly, officials say it's because the state is suing a pharmaceutical company alleged to have used false advertising and improper influence to get its drugs on Texas' now-mandatory adult protocol, the Texas Medication Algorithm Project.

"Privately, individuals with knowledge of the case – who spoke only on condition of anonymity because of the pending litigation – say the attorney general's investigation of possible fraud in the adult protocol has spread to the children's version."

Read the rest of the article, which offers fascinating details of how pharma has intruded on medical decision making. (Via Pharmalot.)