History of Direct-to-Consumer Pharmacuetical Advertising

By fallonrm

  • First Direct-to-Consumer Print Ad Published

    Merck & Co.'s Pneumovax advertise a Pneumonia Vaccine which appeared in Reader's Digest in 1981.

  • First Drug Advertised on U.S. television

    On May 13, 1983, Boots Pharmaceuticals launched the first TV ads for a prescription medicine in a test market; Tampa, Florida for the prescription brand of Ibuprofen called Rufen. The ads, featured CEO John D. Bryer, who delivered the message that Rufen was cheaper than Motrin. It was a price ad and made no efficacy claims and as such it did not include Package Insert information. The company also placed a full-page ad in

  • FDA Implements a Moratorium on all Advertising

    During this two year period the FDA conducted consumer reports to gauge the reaction to direct advertising.

  • Moratorium Ends

    In 1985, the FDA issued a ruling that required advertising directed to consumers to include significant risk information about the prescription drug being advertised.

  • FDA Publishes a Federal Register

    Federal Register maintains that existing standards to regulate advertisements to physicians must be followed in DTC
    advertising. FDA required advertising directed to consumers to include significant risk information about the prescription drug being advertised.

  • Claritin Paves the Way for Modern DTC

    In order to avoid lengthy disclaimers, the Claritin ad did not mention what the product was for, causing the FDA to relax earlier guidelines for television drug ads

  • FDA releases Guidance for Industry-Consumer-Directed Broadcast Advertisements

    FDA effectively enabled the use of broadcast ads for DTC. This allowed advertisers to forgo the requirement that they scroll or read the entire brief summary of risks and side effects, provided they met an "adequate provision" standard for risk information as shown it began over a decade earlier

  • FDA New Regulations Finalized

  • PHRMA released its Guiding Principles on Direct to Consumer Advertisements About Prescription Medicines

    In an attempt to stop Congressional intervention, PHRMA releases its own regulations on advertising

  • Henry Waxman Attempts to Add Regulations

    U.S. Representative Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), attempts to attach a rider to a drug safety bill in 2007 that would have banned DTC ads for drugs that had been on the market for less than three years.The bill passed without his amendment.

  • Congressional Investigation

    Congressional Investigation into the use of celebrities in drug advertisment.

  • Pharmaceutical Companies make concessions

    Pharm companies agree to wait six months before promoting newly approved drugs