Misleading Pharmaceutical Claims

FDA rolls out "bad ad program" to identify misleading pharmaceutical marketing claims.
The AP (5/12, Perrone) reports that on May 11, the Food and Drug Administration announced "it will begin asking doctors to keep an eye out for misleading drug advertisements as part of the agency's latest effort to police the pharmaceutical industry's multibillion-dollar marketing machine." Specifically, the FDA's "'bad ad program ' urges doctors to report ads and sales pitches that violate FDA rules." And, "as part of its new program, FDA will offer doctors training at medical conferences to help spot misleading ads. They can report advertising violations anonymously by emailing badad(at)fda.gov or calling 877-RX-DDMAC."
According to an agency news release, the program is also aimed at "consumer ads that downplay drug risks and effectiveness," Modern Healthcare (5/12, Rhea) reports.
CQ HealthBeat (5/12) reports, "The program will be run by the Division of Drug Marketing, Advertising, and Communications in the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, and it will be implemented in three phases. In the first phase, FDA staff members will talk with healthcare providers at conventions and will partner with medical societies to hand out material about the program." The second and third phases "will expand those efforts and add updated educational material, officials said."
Reuters (5/12, Richwine) quotes Rebecca Patchin, MD, board chair of the American Medical Association, who called the agency's new program to rein in deceptive or misleading marketing of medications "a helpful avenue for physicians to bring these activities to the agency's attention." Speaking on behalf of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, Ken Johnson called the FDA's new program "another step to help educate -- and receive feedback from -- healthcare providers about prescription drug advertising and promotion." Medscape (5/11, Lowes) also covered the story.