Doctors say drug companies exaggerate

LONDON, Aug. 29 (UPI) -- Britain's Royal College of General Practitioners has accused drug companies of disease-mongering to raise sales, The Sunday Telegraph reported.

The college said the pharmaceutical industry is endangering the National Health Service by encouraging unnecessary prescribing of costly drugs.

In a parliamentary inquiry, the college accused companies of exaggerating the dangers of certain conditions in their milder forms.

Maureen Baker, the college's honorary secretary, wants the Commons health inquiry to investigate companies' practices.

"It would be fruitful to look into the increase in disease-mongering by them," she said.

"It is very much in the interest of the pharmaceutical industry to draw a line that includes as large a population as possible within the 'ill' category. The bigger this group is, the more drugs they can sell. If current trends continue, publicly funded health-care systems will be at risk of financial collapse with huge cost to society as a whole."