To the Editor.
—The editorial from the Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs of the AMA entitled "Gifts to Physicians From Industry"1 is very good, but it doesn't address one important problem.
In many continuing medical education activities sponsored by pharmaceutical companies, the subject and the speaker are picked by the company. The companies select subjects related to the drugs that they produce and promote as well as speakers who frequently prescribe these drugs. The speakers are usually well-qualified subspecialists, often in academic medicine.
The pharmaceutical companies and speakers are no doubt sincere, but the presentation is biased in favor of treatment with particular drugs.
As a result, not only are we getting continuing medical education presentations that are not objective, but they are overwhelmingly related to drug treatment.
When a pharmaceutical company sponsors a continuing medical education presentation, the subject and the speaker should be chosen by the
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