US Senate hearing told of need for voluntary industry DTC ad standards

While most pharmaceutical companies approach direct-to-consumeradvertising in a responsible, ethical manner, others focus on it primarily as a mechanism to drive sales, the US Senate Commerce subcommittee on consumer affairs has heard. Michael Shaw, executive director of EthicAD, a group of academic health care community leaders, said consumers have no way to differentiate between educational programs promoting their welfare and those designed to promote the sponsor's welfare, and voluntary industry standards are needed.

Through DTC advertising, drugmakers have become health care information providers, just like doctors or hospitals, he said. If they assume the role of educating the public directly about safe, appropriate drug use, they have the responsibility to give them all the facts. The Food and Drug Administration is the US public's best protector but it does not have the resources to do it alone, he added. FDA rules require truthful, fairly-balanced information but do not ensure that it is develped with consumers' best interests in mind, nor require the industry to consider public health as an important factor in developing DTC information.

Non-profit groups like EthicAD can help industry and government regulators by working cooperatively to formulate standards to better educate the public, he suggested, and make available a "good seal of approval" to ensure that appropriate consumer standards are met. Burdensome new legislation or regulations are unnecessary, he said, calling instead for an opportunity for industry to adopt voluntary standards to reassure Americans that they can trust the information bombarding them through every medium of advertising. The EthicAD standards are a good starting point, he said, since they are based on recommendations of industry, regulators, health care professionals and consumer groups.