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29 March 2024

Freebies, junkets for doctors 'halal'

Dr Ali Ahmed Mashael, Grand Mufti, Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department, Dubai (IACAD). (SUPPLIED)

Published
By Mohammed El Sadafy

Incentives offered by pharmaceutical companies to doctors, including all-expenses paid trips to scientific conferences with spending money - are permissible (halal) and legal according to Dr Ali Ahmed Mashael, Grand Mufti, Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department, Dubai (IACAD).

The Grand Mufti added that if a doctor uses such an incentive to indulge in acts forbidden by Shariah law it is 'haram' (not permissible), but in such a case the company which provided the incentive is not guilty.

Dr Mashael adds that it is haram (not permissible) for doctors to prescribe medicines when the patient does not need them - only to satisfy pharmaceutical companies from where they receive gifts and/or financial incentives .

This fatwa of Dr Ali Ahmed Mashael, Grand Mufti, Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department, Dubai (IACAD), came in response to a question posed by a representative of a pharmaceutical company.

The pharmacist questioned the legality of his work, with some doctors acting specifically to get incentives and gifts from the company.

[Image via Shutterstock]