Who Makes Depo-Provera?
Pharmacia & Upjohn, Inc., a transnational pharmaceutical giant, originally manufactured and marketed Depo-Provera. It aggressively lobbied the FDA for the right to market Depo and, as of 1993, it retailed its product for $25-40 per injection. Pfizer, Inc., the world’s largest research-based pharmaceutical company, now owns Depo. In papers filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Upjohn admitted that, in order to secure sales of Depo-Provera abroad, it made payments of more than $4 million to employees of, or intermediaries for, foreign governments and to numerous hospital employees from 1971 to 1975. Gerard Thomas, the vice-president, secretary and general counsel of Upjohn, informed SEC that small amounts paid to minor government officials were not included in the total. History of Depo-Provera: *1967-1978: The largest test on humans of Depo-Provera begins and is conducted for eleven years through the Grady Clinic in Atlanta, GA on 14,000 women. 50% of the subjects
