Is Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY) One of the Best Companies in America?

The case against
The marketing of drugs is supposed to be straightforward. The Food and Drug Administration approves a drug for a specific indication. While doctors are allowed to prescribe drugs off label, drugmakers are expected to limit their promotion to just the FDA-approved use.

In the past, Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE:BMY) seems to have blurred that line. In 2007, Bristol-Myers agreed to pay more than $515 million to resolve allegations of illegal drug marketing and pricing practices. The Department of Justice accused Bristol-Myers of promoting its antipsychotic Abilify for uses it wasn’t approved for. The company also allegedly gave doctors kickbacks to induce them to prescribe Bristol-Myers’ drugs.

In 2011, the California Insurance Commissioner jumped on a whistleblower bandwagon that claimed the company wooed doctors with everything from golf outings to samba dances to seats in a suite at Lakers basketball games.

Like the rest of the industry, Bristol-Myers has cleaned up its marketing act. A few years ago, drugmakers voluntarily agreed to eliminate all branded freebies, from pens to mugs to T-shirts.

Still, off-label use remains a lucrative way to expand sales that can be hard to regulate. Self-policing — mostly through the potential for whistleblower lawsuits — remains the only way for the industry to play by the rules.

Foolish bottom line
Past indiscretions aside, Bristol-Myers Squibb has proven it can balance all the stakeholders by producing solid returns for investors while respecting patients and employees. Even if it didn’t make the top 25, just missing the cut is still pretty impressive and should be a signal for investors to take a closer look.

Click here to read about the companies that made the final cut of The 25 Best Companies in America.

The article Is Bristol-Myers Squibb One of the Best Companies in America? originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Brian Orelli has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Gilead Sciences.

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