A number of patients’ rights organisations in the Netherlands are funded by pharmaceuticals companies, RTL news reported on Monday.

In total, the 15 biggest pharmaceuticals companies put €1.7m into supporting patients’ organisations in 2010, RTL’s own research showed.
In some cases, the drugs company cash accounted for most of the group’s funding. For example, the lung cancer information centre (Longkankerinformatiecentrum) got 96% of its cash from drugs firms.
The biggest amount – €256,000 – went to the Asthma Fund, while the Diabetes Association got €176,391. The big organisations get funding from a wide variety of sources and are less dependent on drugs company money, RTL news said.