E-DRUG: HAI Europe Statement: The tide is turning against pharmaceutical ads
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HAI Europe Statement:
The tide is turning against pharmaceutical ads
11 August 2009 - Controversy over direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA)
of prescription medicines is intensifying and nowhere more so than in
the United States, one of only two countries where the practice is
currently permitted. A number of recent news articles have underlined
growing dissatisfaction with DTCA.
Industry cannot play a truly independent role in providing information
to patients and consumers, and it is vital to maintain high standards of
objectivity to protect the public from messages that aim to promote
sales rather than inform health decisions. Health Action International
(HAI) has consistently advocated for the highest quality of unbiased
information about medicines. We strongly oppose any attempts to
compromise this information and are, therefore, encouraged by this shift
against the promotion and advertising of prescription medicines.
The New York Times recently ran a 'Room for Debate' discussion about
prescription drug adverts, which revealed that the majority of responses
wanted this type of advertising "altered or banned altogether" (Saying
'No' to Drug Ads
http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/08/saying-no-to-drug-ads).
The World Health Organization has also taken note of the increasing
scrutiny of DTCA. An article in this month's WHO bulletin
(Direct-to-consumer advertising under fire. http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/87/8/09-040809.pdf) set out some of the controversial advertising tactics and presented a number of views questioning the practice of DTCA from a range of stakeholders, including the CEO of a large pharmaceutical company.
In addition, another article noted that in July this year, the US
Congress was debating four separate bills aimed at restricting or taxing
DTCA (Tale of a Drug Advertiser's Tall Tales
http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/current-issue/e3i8b17754369
6059c91a3ce72f8add34ee).
This trend also has global implications. In the past decade, repeated
attempts have been made to erode or eliminate the regulations banning
DTCA in Europe. The most recent, the 'information to patients'
directive, launched as part of the pharmaceutical package, has proved to
be unpopular as Member States have rightly recognised the public health
and budgetary consequences of allowing DTCA through the back door.
HAI Europe will continue to monitor the progress of the 'information to
patients' directive to make sure that the health of European patients
and consumers is safeguarded by the ensuring that health decisions can
be based on the most objective information and not the most effective
advertising.
Terri Beswick
Communications Officer
Health Action International
Email: terri@haiweb.org
Website: http://www.haiweb.org
Health Action International (HAI) is an independent, global network
working to increase access to essential medicines and improve their
rational use through research excellence and evidence-based advocacy.