patients with leprosy in the United States until a few months before July, 1986. The drug is especially helpful to patients with leprosy in treating an extremely painful allergic reaction of the skin. The company discontinued exporting thalidomide because of liability fears. A lack of insurance coverage for those requiring the drug was also a problem. Versatis and Tapentadol cases In July 2010, the British Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA) received complaints about a poster used by field-based teams at Grünenthal. It promoted the off-label use of Versatis, while the cost comparison analysis was flawed and misleading. The company stated that it had paid for the printing but no editorial control. Nevertheless, the Code of Practice was breached, and an undertaking was received. In November 2010, the British Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) received an allegation that Grünenthal promoted its unlicensed product, Tapentadol, to health professionals. Grünenthal conducted an investigation and concluded that the allegation was unsubstantiated. To date, the PMCPA website lists 16 completed cases involving Grünenthal. Further drug development The company has focused on the treatment of pain and is doing its own research and development in this field. Grünenthal developed the drug Tramadol, which is marketed under the brand name Tramal, one of the best-selling opioid painkillers. Other business units are gynecology, dermatology, and anti-infectives. Current products include the birth control pill Belara and the matrix pain patch Transtec. Unlike Tramadol, which is a Schedule IV(C-IV) medication, the drug Tapentadol HCl, as licensed by Grünenthal, is Schedule II(C-II) in the U.S. (meaning it is a potent agonist, therefore subject to abuse similar to other C-II opioids, such as oxycodone and morphine). In 2018, Grünenthal acquired European rights to the pain-related brands Nexium and Vimovo and the US-rights for Qutenza (capsaicin). The company began building a US structure to commercialise the latter asset through Averitas Pharma. Nexium has since been removed from the market due to kidney damage. This drug also did not have sufficient testing before it was brought to market. Later in 2018, Grünenthal obtained global rights for Qutenza. Social commitment In 1998, the company launched the Grünenthal Foundation for Palliative Medicine. With its help, the first academic chair and clinic for palliative care was founded at the RWTH Aachen University in 2010. Since 2004, Grünenthal supports young scientists through the EFIC-Grünenthal-Grant with €200,000 the world's largest prize in its field. Bursaries