SEC questions US drug companies operations in Poland

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is currently investigating whether Polish divisions of American pharmaceutical enterprises have violated the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which forbids the companies to pay bribes to foreign administrative officials. The SEC has already requested Eli Lilly and Johnson&Johnson to present documents related to the case. "I confirm that we have received an informal inquiry to ensure we have been operating within the law. We have freely handed in the documents," said Huber Zawadzki, PR manager of Eli Lilly Polska. However, Mateusz Żelewski, the head of Johnson&Johnson's supervisory board has refused to comment on the situation. Terra Fox, the spokesperson of US Eli Lilly said that SEC investigations have a wide range and encompass several American pharmaceutical concerns which operate in Poland. (Parkiet, p. 1) A.K.