Vitamin B deficiency in the pharmaceutical lobby
No Significant Relaxation of the New Advertising Regulations for Medicines
No significant relaxation of the new advertising regulations for pharmaceuticalsBy Andreas Panzeri The Swiss Advertising Association hosted a workshop on the new advertising regulations for pharmaceuticals. "A killer for creative advertising?" was the provocative question posed during the discussion. The answers tended to be yes, as pharmaceutical advertising remains heavily regulated in Switzerland even with the new federal law.
"This is an advertisement for therapeutic products. Seek advice from a specialist at the ICS and read the advertising guidelines!" This slightly modified mandatory notice could be issued if an agency wishes to advertise medicinal products in future. Pharmaceutical advertisers were expecting a new law to come into force on July 1, 2001. In December 2000, the cantonal parliament in Berne passed the new Therapeutic Products Act, which is to replace the guidelines of the Intercantonal Control Authority for Therapeutic Products (ICP). However, as the necessary ordinances have not yet been drawn up and a second official consultation began on July 2, the eagerly awaited ordinance will not come into force until January 2002. What will it bring us?
Alfred Jost, Deputy Director of the ICS, summarized the framework conditions for pharmaceutical advertising and showed that the new law has hardly allowed any greater freedom since the liberalization in 1995. In principle, the list of 17 "inadmissible advertising elements" remains unchanged. The mandatory reference "This is a medicinal product..." will also remain obligatory.
However, price comparisons should be possible under the new regulation. However, this only applies to specialist advertising aimed at healthcare professionals. The state government stated in its report that "medicinal products are a special commodity with considerable potential for misuse and abuse". Advertising to the general public is therefore still only permitted for non-prescription medicines.
Side effects of PR should not be underestimated
Advertising must also not "encourage the excessive, improper or inappropriate use of medicinal products". In concrete terms: a "3 for 2" promotion or packs with added value remain inadmissible for end consumers. However, patients may now also be rewarded with loyalty bonuses, just as a doctor or pharmacist receives from the pharmaceutical supplier at the end of the year.
According to Jost, however, "the fear that advertising will tempt consumers to make more purchases is wrong", because according to studies, such advertising "only shifts market share, except perhaps in the case of Viagra".
In the past, any communication could only take place in two stages with the doctor or pharmacist intervening in a censoring and advisory capacity. Today, patients can also find out about new medicines in person. One question left unanswered at the workshop was therefore whether and how side effects can be kept under control by PR in the future with appropriate package inserts for the new Medicines Act.
The new law is powerless against internationally disseminated information on the Internet, even if there are clear rules, at least for homepages published from Switzerland, as Sylvia Schüpbach from the ICS legal service knew.
Being creative means pushing the boundaries of what is possible
Simon Frey tried to show how creative advertising is still possible - or impossible from an advertising perspective - under such conditions. The pharmacist is an ICS Advertising Assessor and must assess the advertising material presented to him in advance in the event of complaints or inquiries.
His basic rules: Drug advertising must remain factual and must not work with emotions that are effective in advertising. Stimulating music in a commercial is just as frowned upon as suggestive illustrations in an advertisement.
It is forbidden to show more than one daily dose so that the intake could not be interpreted as harmless. Nor should exaggerated hopes be raised, such as the slogan "Healthy in 5 minutes". Similarly, there is not a single product "completely without side effects", as Felix Schwarzenbach, doctor and secretary of the pharmaceutical advertising code for the chemical industry, explained.
"Creative surfing at the limits of what is possible" is therefore the recipe. The new regulations have also been referred to as "guard rails". However, anyone who goes against them will have to be assessed by federal officials in future, as the new law means that ICS staff will be taken over by a new Federal Institute for Therapeutic Products that is legally binding for all parties.
"This is an advertisement for therapeutic products. Seek advice from a specialist at the ICS and read the advertising guidelines!" This slightly modified mandatory notice could be issued if an agency wishes to advertise medicinal products in future. Pharmaceutical advertisers were expecting a new law to come into force on July 1, 2001. In December 2000, the cantonal parliament in Berne passed the new Therapeutic Products Act, which is to replace the guidelines of the Intercantonal Control Authority for Therapeutic Products (ICP). However, as the necessary ordinances have not yet been drawn up and a second official consultation began on July 2, the eagerly awaited ordinance will not come into force until January 2002. What will it bring us?
Alfred Jost, Deputy Director of the ICS, summarized the framework conditions for pharmaceutical advertising and showed that the new law has hardly allowed any greater freedom since the liberalization in 1995. In principle, the list of 17 "inadmissible advertising elements" remains unchanged. The mandatory reference "This is a medicinal product..." will also remain obligatory.
However, price comparisons should be possible under the new regulation. However, this only applies to specialist advertising aimed at healthcare professionals. The state government stated in its report that "medicinal products are a special commodity with considerable potential for misuse and abuse". Advertising to the general public is therefore still only permitted for non-prescription medicines.
Side effects of PR should not be underestimated
Advertising must also not "encourage the excessive, improper or inappropriate use of medicinal products". In concrete terms: a "3 for 2" promotion or packs with added value remain inadmissible for end consumers. However, patients may now also be rewarded with loyalty bonuses, just as a doctor or pharmacist receives from the pharmaceutical supplier at the end of the year.
According to Jost, however, "the fear that advertising will tempt consumers to make more purchases is wrong", because according to studies, such advertising "only shifts market share, except perhaps in the case of Viagra".
In the past, any communication could only take place in two stages with the doctor or pharmacist intervening in a censoring and advisory capacity. Today, patients can also find out about new medicines in person. One question left unanswered at the workshop was therefore whether and how side effects can be kept under control by PR in the future with appropriate package inserts for the new Medicines Act.
The new law is powerless against internationally disseminated information on the Internet, even if there are clear rules, at least for homepages published from Switzerland, as Sylvia Schüpbach from the ICS legal service knew.
Being creative means pushing the boundaries of what is possible
Simon Frey tried to show how creative advertising is still possible - or impossible from an advertising perspective - under such conditions. The pharmacist is an ICS Advertising Assessor and must assess the advertising material presented to him in advance in the event of complaints or inquiries.
His basic rules: Drug advertising must remain factual and must not work with emotions that are effective in advertising. Stimulating music in a commercial is just as frowned upon as suggestive illustrations in an advertisement.
It is forbidden to show more than one daily dose so that the intake could not be interpreted as harmless. Nor should exaggerated hopes be raised, such as the slogan "Healthy in 5 minutes". Similarly, there is not a single product "completely without side effects", as Felix Schwarzenbach, doctor and secretary of the pharmaceutical advertising code for the chemical industry, explained.
"Creative surfing at the limits of what is possible" is therefore the recipe. The new regulations have also been referred to as "guard rails". However, anyone who goes against them will have to be assessed by federal officials in future, as the new law means that ICS staff will be taken over by a new Federal Institute for Therapeutic Products that is legally binding for all parties.
