AARP To Launch $10M Campaign To Counter DTC Drug Advertising
AARP plans to launch a $10 million advertising campaign intended to counteract the effects of direct-to-consumer advertising, the Wall Street Journal reports. According to the Journal, AARP, formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons, hopes to "prod more people" into inquiring about generic equivalent prescriptions and learn more about the potential side effects of the drugs they are taking. The campaign will include print ads, beginning April 19, and network television ads, beginning April 21. According to the Journal, the print ads will include the warning, "Before you take your medicine, take this advice," along with "pointers" like "Take exactly as directed, but first call around and compare drug prices" and "Do not let advertising sell you on drugs you don't need." The American Pharmaceutical Association has agreed to assist in the campaign with counter displays and pamphlets. The Journal reports that "[a]t first glance, [AARP] might not seem to stand much of a chance" against the drug industry, which spent almost $2.5 billion on DTC ads last year, according to CMR, an advertising tracking unit of Taylor Nelson Sofres. The Journal reports that "[e]ven" Bill Novelli, CEO of AARP, admits that the ad campaign is "little more than a 'drop in the bucket.'" However, the Journal notes that Novelli, former head of the National Center for Tobacco Free Kids, succeeded in a similar situation, when he led an effort to "bring down" cigarette advertisements featuring "Joe Camel" and the "Marlboro Man." An unidentified spokesperson for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Association said, "It is certainly appropriate for AARP to make its own recommendations. But in the end, it should be the doctor, who knows the patient best, and what the patient needs, making the final decision" (Greene, Wall Street Journal, 4/17). A HealthCast of the news conference to kick off the campaign will be available online after 3 p.m. on April 18. The AARP ad is available at online at AdWatch.
Kessler Calls DTC Opposition 'Wrong'
Meanwhile, former FDA commissioner Dr. David Kessler on April 16 said he was "wrong" in his effort to prevent direct-to-consumer prescription drug advertising during his tenure, the Boston Globe reports. Kessler, who was in office from 1990 to 1997, had opposed DTC advertising because he "fear[ed]" the ads would "create a flood of misinformation and confusion." But speaking to a group of drug and advertising executives at a conference on DTC advertising in Boston, Kessler said, "I think I was wrong. I think you've done a pretty good job." Kessler added, "On the whole, I think there is a lot of educational benefit" to DTC ads. The Globe reports that Kessler's statements are an "indicator of how completely" DTC ads "have won over some critics." According to the Globe, DTC advertising "appears to have turned a corner in public acceptance." Spending on DTC advertising has grown from $791 million in 1996 to $2.5 billion in 2000, and the once "controversial marketing practice" is now a "staple of pop culture." Still, critics of DTC advertising insist the ads "prompt some patients to make unreasonable demands" for medications, "underplay" side effects, "cruelly tantalize seniors without drug coverage" and add to the high costs of drugs (Mishra, Boston Globe, 4/17).
