Traidos Roche Study

J Bus Ethics (2014) 121:315–328
DOI 10.1007/s10551-013-1723-1

Roche’s Clinical Trials with Organs from Prisoners: Does Profit
Trump Morals?
Judith Schrempf-Stirling

Received: 17 August 2012 / Accepted: 5 April 2013 / Published online: 17 April 2013
Ó Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013

Abstract This case study discusses the economic, legal, and ethical considerations for conducting clinical trials in a controversial context. In 2010, pharmaceutical giant Roche received a shame award by the Swiss non-governmental organization Berne Declaration and Greenpeace for conducting clinical trials with organs taken from executed prisoners in China. The company respected local regulations and industry ethical standards. However, medical associations condemned organs from executed prisoners on moral grounds. Human rights organizations demanded that
Roche ended its clinical trials in China immediately. Students are expected to review the economic and ethical issues regarding the outsourcing of clinical trials to controversial human rights contexts, and discuss how to make business decisions when there are conflicts between making profit and ethical considerations. Was Roche complicit in the human rights violations that were related to its clinical trials? Future patients might benefit from these clinical trials. Do profit and the greater good, in general, trump morals?
Keywords Human rights Á Roche Á China Á Clinical trials Á Organ transplantation

Introduction
In 2010, Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche received the
Public Eye Award. Unfortunately, receiving this shame award was nothing to be proud of: The Public Eye Award
J. Schrempf-Stirling (&)
Robins School of Business, University of Richmond, Richmond,
VA 23173, USA e-mail: [e-mail]

was given to corporations for their irresponsible behavior that had negative social, ethical, and/or environmental side effects on stakeholders such as workers, local communities, consumers, the environment, or

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