Forget The Freebies / WITN.com - Eastern Carolina's Weather Authority - Breaking News &Weather For Eastern North Carolina: Greenville NC, New Bern, Jacksonville NC, Kinston, Washington NC, Morehead City & Havelock. WITN 7 NBC For Pitt County, Onslow County & All of East Carolina.

Home · News · Weather · Sports · Politics · Blogs · Web Cams · Sunrise · Lottery · Scam Alert · Entertainment · ECU Sports · Station/Bios

Real Estate · CarSoup · Rental Guide · Experts · Double Dollar Deals · Classifieds · Food · Contests · Community · Carolina Camera · Health · First Alert · HD

Evans Road Wildfire Grows; Smoke Remains A Problem
506 Comments

Updated: Father Of Dead Children Wants Some Answers
124 Comments

NC State Gives First Lady An 88% Raise
73 Comments

Who Are The Best Doctors In Eastern Carolina?
41 Comments

ONLY ON WITN: Greenville Police Chief Responds To Claims Crime Reports Are Being Changed
35 Comments

FIRST ON WITN: Two Year Old Wearing Diaper Found Wandering Outside
31 Comments

	Lottery Latest results from the North Carolina Education Lottery.

	Scam Alert Protect yourself. Don't get scammed!

	Country Rover Tom Skinner goes off the beaten path.

	On The Road WITN covers all of Eastern Carolina.

	Doppler’s Doghouse See Doppler Dog’s pet pals online.

	Gas Prices Search for the area’s best deals.

	Hunting & Fishing Forecast Best time of day to hunt or fish…

	Green Guide Your online resource for "green" living!

Quest for oil, gas off Fla. begins
Oil companies once viewed drilling in the deep waters off Florida as cost prohibitive. Politicians feared even the slightest sign of support would be career suicide.
Calif. faces blazes on two fronts
A pair of out-of-control wildfires roared along California’s central coast Friday, chewing through opposite ends of a parched forest and threatening a total of more than 4,500 homes.
Former Sen. Jesse Helms dies at 86
Former Sen. Jesse Helms, who built a career along the fault lines of racial politics and battled liberals, Communists and the occasional fellow Republican during 30 years in Congress, died Friday. He was 86.

	Carolina Camera Upload your favorite photos and videos.

	WITN2go WITN News, Weather, Sports and more on your mobile phone – Anytime. Anywhere.

	Watch 24//7 Weather Need the local weather right now? Click here and watch!

	First Alert Instant weather and breaking news on your desktop!

	Carolina Scanner News from around the state. All on one convenient page.

Forget The Freebies

Save

Posted: 7:33 AM May 13, 2008
Last Updated: 7:33 AM May 13, 2008

2 comments

A | A | A

No more free samples with prescriptions, at least from doctors working for Carolinas HealthCare System.

The Charlotte Observer reported Tuesday the system's 600 doctors
have been told to stop giving out free drug samples.

The medical director for the hospital physician network, Dr. William Sugg, says the rules are to protect patients, limit liability and decrease the influence of drug companies.

Sugg says the hospital's doctors haven't done a good enough job of making sure samples are thrown away when they expire. He says doctors also haven't tracked which patient got the samples well enough to contact them in case of a recall.

Ken Johnson with the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America says samples help patients get treatment sooner and find out which medicines work best for them.

More Stories
Bulls On The Loose!

Hot Dog Contest: Champ Downs 64

Statue Of Liberty Crown May Reopen

Pregnant Soldier's Death Investigation Continues

Immigrants Become U.S. Citizens In Kinston

Former Senator Jesse Helms Is Dead At 86

STORM UPDATE: Tropical Storm Bertha Moves Westward

Shots Ring Out At Jacksonville Taco Bell

Comments are posted from viewers like you and do not always reflect the views of this station.

Posted by: Ron Location: Greenville on May 14, 2008 at 07:14 AM
If not for these free samples, my grandmother would have been without some of the medications she needed for her care. My parents did everything they could to make sure my grandmother could afford the high cost of her other meds and this was one way she could. I am thankful she doesn't live in NC, all seniors need a low cost solution to the outragious price of medications. Sounds like the drug companies were putting the squeeze on this health care provider. Shame on all involved for this rediculous decision.

Posted by: Mike Location: Edenton on May 14, 2008 at 06:25 AM
So now they will sell the samples given to them for free by the drug companies?? Or will they flush them? What about the free Viagra samples?

witn.com's Most Viewed
1.	Updated: Father Of Dead Children Wants Some Answers
2.	James Kenan Football Player Killed In Shooting
3.	FIRST ON WITN: Two Year Old Wearing Diaper Found Wandering Outside
4.	Christie Brinkley Shattered By Husband's Affair With 18-Year-Old
5.	STORM UPDATE: Tropical Storm Bertha Moves Westward
6.	Evans Road Wildfire Grows; Smoke Remains A Problem
7.	Eastern Carolina Clerks Cited For Selling Tobacco To Minors
8.	Camp Lejeune July 4th Celebration Features Country Singer, Activities
9.	Cobra Still On The Loose
10.	UPDATED: Economic Stimulus Check Schedule

	CarSoup Search inventory from local dealers and private sellers.

	Rental Guide Video tours to help you find your next apartment.

	Double Dollar Deals Save 50% from local merchants.

	Sylvan Problem Solver Video tips from Sylvan Learning Center.

	Classifieds THE place to buy and sell items. Most ads free.

	Experts Got a question? Ask Eastern Carolina's Experts.

	Local Lookup Find local businesses online.

	Business Break Two minutes of info from local businesses.

	Lawyers On Call Free legal information on a variety of topics.

	Video Home Tours Tour Eastern Carolina homes from your computer.