Two Developments in DTC Drug Marketing

Jeanne Whalen of the Journal reports that European officials are taking a step towards allowing drug marketing:

The European Commission proposed legislation Wednesday that would let drug companies give consumers "objective and nonpromotional" information about their medicines in print and online. Currently, drug companies can't provide any information to European consumers, except on leaflets found inside drug packaging. The legislative proposals must be approved by the European Parliament and Council of Ministers before becoming law, a process that could take years.

Meanwhile, in the US, it looks as though drug companies have agreed to largely meaningless reforms in advertising. Jonathan Rockoff and Shirley Wang of the Journal report that prescription drug marketers, represented by former congressman Billy Tauzin, have said, "...they will halt advertising that includes promoting prescription drugs for uses that the Food and Drug Administration hasn't approved or using actors as physicians without saying so. The guidelines say celebrity endorsers shouldn't say they use a drug unless they actually do."

And here's the big b.s:

Billy Tauzin, president of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the industry trade group that issued the standards Wednesday, said the aim was to address the concerns of doctors, Congress and other critics while continuing to keep patients informed about valuable treatments.

"Our goal is to constantly look at [the ads] and see if we can improve them, so they are more informative, more educational and less promotional," Mr. Tauzin said.

How philanthropic!

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Whenever I see ddrug ads on TV and they start listing the side effects, I find that adding "and demonic possession" helps.

The European commission is a bunch of free-market fundamentalists, and "free and unbiased competition" is their mantra. For them, everything that can be sold should be; and if it is, it must be at market price. They recently tried to prevent governments to help their biggest banks, because state subsidies are anathema to them. So you see why I'm not surprised they want to make drugs a product like any other.

By Christophe Thill (not verified) on 16 Dec 2008 #permalink

These ads in the US drive me crazy. I asked me doc once what he thought and just sort of grimaced. I guess he doesn't like them either. Since I have a pretty good relationship with him, whenever I go in for my semi-annual refill of allopurinol I ask for whatever else is hot on TV, whether or not it's designed to treat anything I may or may not have. Although I'm beginning to think at my age I may not be joking for much longer, especialy about the Cialis. Usually I ask for some Nembutal as well, but he never gives me any of it!