IMS HEALTH PHARMACEUTICAL PARALLEL TRADE SERVICE IN EUROPE

[James Love <love@cptech.org>]

Interesting development concerning the EU parallel
trade in pharmaceuticals.  

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IMS HEALTH DEVELOPS PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY'S FIRST 
PARALLEL TRADE SERVICE IN EUROPE

Service Provides Strategic Advantage for   
Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Targeting Europe

Contact: Michael Gury, +44 171 393 5864

LONDON, September 9, 1999 - IMS HEALTH (NYSE:RX), the 
world's leading provider of information solutions to the 
pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, today announced 
the development of a new tracking system to measure the 
impact of parallel trade on the pharmaceutical industry in 
Europe.  

Harmonization of EU trade policies has opened the door to 
parallel trade within the pharmaceutical industry.  In a 
single European market in which drug prices are controlled 
by some Member states, wholesalers and other traders can 
source the same medicines from different countries to 
obtain lower prices. This distorts manufacturers sales 
within a country. 

"Parallel Trade impacts the pharmaceutical market dynamics 
in several ways," said Gilles Pajot, vice chairman and 
president IMS HEALTH Europe. "For example, the skewing of 
country sales complicates the allocation of resources for 
the pharmaceutical industry. Our new methodology provides 
insight on the impact of parallel trade on a company's 
operations across its product portfolio, making possible 
better-informed decisions." 

Parallel trade activity has increased in Europe during the 
past two years and has become increasingly complex to 
measure.  Pajot cited a combination of factors, including 
changes in exchange rates, particularly the increasing 
strength of the British pound; an increase in the 
sophistication of the importing/exporting sector; the high 
profile of parallel trade in the media; and cost control 
measures implemented by healthcare payers.

"Our new tracking system examines the impact of these 
factors and more, making it unique within the industry," 
said Pajot, adding that the service has been available to 
IMS HEALTH clients for several months. 

IMS HEALTH is the world's leading provider of 
information solutions to the pharmaceutical and healthcare 
industries. With more than $1.2 billion in 1998 revenue, 
IMS HEALTH operates in over 90 countries.  IMS HEALTH is 
the largest pharmaceutical manufacturer information 
partner, with over 40 years' experience in the industry.  
Key products and services integral to customer day-to-day 
operations include: market research for prescription and 
over-the-counter pharmaceutical products; sales management 
information to optimize sales force productivity; 
technology enabled selling solutions for sales and 
marketing decision-making; and technology systems and 
information services that support managed care 
organizations. Additional information is available at 
http://www.imshealth.com.

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-- 
James Love, Director, Consumer Project on Technology
I can be reached at love@cptech.org, by telephone 202.387.8030,
by fax at 202.234.5176. CPT web page is http://www.cptech.org