AstraZeneca, which sells the schizophrenia medication, has agreed to help the National Association for Mental Illness, or NAMI, create support groups nationwide.

The organization, which calls itself a grassroots group but has ‘corporate partnerships’ with numerous pharmaceutical companies, says this is the first time any company has underwritten this endeavor. No one at NAMI or AstraZeneca, though, will say how much funding is involved.

Spokesman for both organizations say the effort is designed only to help people deal with their illnesses. But they demur when asked whether this may not also somehow direct people toward Seroquel, if not some other drug.

Partnerships are dandy. Corporations can be altruistic. And helping people cope with mental illness is definitely a worthy goal. But a little more transparency would be useful, especially since NAMI’s 2005 annual report doesn’t detail contributions from companies and individuals. Those totaled $7.8 million, or 75 percent of all revenue, and included $5 million in unrestricted contributions.

[tags]AstraZeneca, NAMI, Schizophrenia, Seroquel[/tags]