Viagra becomes available in Japan
March 23, 1999
Web posted at: 3:11 AM EST (0811 GMT)
TOKYO, March 23 (Reuters) - The anti-impotence drug Viagra became
available in Japan on Tuesday after receiving approval in a matter of months.
Officials at Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Inc, a division of U.S.-based Pfizer Inc,
said they had high expectations for the much-heralded drug, which went on
sale in the United States nearly a year ago.
"Japan is the world's second-largest market for pharmaceuticals, so of
course we look forward to strong sales in line with this," said Takaichi
Hirota, manager of product communications at Pfizer Pharmaceuticals.
He declined, however, to give specific sales projections.
"Erectile dysfunction is a serious condition and those who suffer from it tend
to suffer alone and in silence," Hirota added. "But now there is help for these
people, and this is a very good thing."
The number of Japanese men suffering from impotence is estimated at six to
seven million, media reports say.
Viagra will be available only with a doctor's prescription and will not be
covered by health insurance, but Pfizer's Hirota said he could not tell if this
would dampen sales.
A 25-milligram tablet will cost 1,100 yen ($9.32) and a 50-milligram tablet
1,300 yen, roughly in line with prices in the United States.
Men must also foot the bill for pre-prescription tests, estimated at 10,000
yen or more. These include urine and blood tests and an electrocardiogram.
Birth control activists have been up in arms about Viagra's unusually rapid
approval on January 25 after only six months of deliberations and despite
more than 130 deaths worldwide attributed to its use since it went on sale
last year.
In contrast, the birth control pill has yet to be made widely available in Japan
nearly three decades after it appeared in the West.
Opponents of the pill have raised concerns that it would promote
promiscuity, lead to a rise in sexually transmitted diseases and even cause
reproductive troubles if estrogen-tainted waste from users made its way into
the environment.
While Japan's Health Ministry appears likely to finally grant approval to a
low-dose pill in June this year, any prescription will carry with it a long list of
caveats and rules, including requiring periodic tests for sexually transmitted
diseases.
Viagra faces none of these regulations, prompting advocates of the pill's
approval to cry foul.
"Men's well-being is very important in Japan, but not women's," said Midori
Ashida, secretary of the Professional Women's Coalition for Sexuality and
Health.
"For women, the most important thing in this society is to have children, and
the pill is a drug to avoid having children."
Pfizer's Hirota said his company was pleased with the rapid approval given
Viagra.
"The problems of Viagra and the pill are completely different, and linking
them is a bit strange," he said.
Production of the drug started at a factory in central Japan immediately
following its approval in January and has been proceeding at a high pitch
ever since, under extremely tight security to prevent theft, Japanese media
reports say.
Copyright 1999 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast,
rewritten, or redistributed.
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