House Health Subcommittee Bill Bans and Restricts Prescription Drug Advertising | ANA Government Relations | ANA

House Health Subcommittee Bill Bans and Restricts Prescription Drug Advertising

Please Contact Subcommittee Members to Oppose These Provisions

The Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ), has released a discussion draft of the drug safety bill. That draft contains five new restrictions on prescription drug advertising to consumers:

  1. a three-year ban on ads for new medications;
  2. preapproval of ad content by the FDA;
  3. mandated warning language about nonspecific, unidentified possible adverse events;
  4. a mandated "black triangle" warning symbol for all new drugs; and
  5. required preapproval of a medication's marketing plan by FDA.

The Health Subcommittee is expected to markup the drug safety bill on Thursday, June 14, 2007.

We need your help to defeat these ad bans and restrictions!

These provisions would set a very dangerous precedent for other product categories beyond the pharmaceutical industry. ANA is working closely with member companies and other industry groups to oppose these provisions. We support giving the FDA new civil penalty authority similar to that used by the Federal Trade Commission for false or misleading ads. But banning or imposing massive new warning requirements on these ads would be a serious mistake.

It would be very helpful if your company could immediately contact members of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health to express your opposition to any ban or new restrictions on prescription drug advertising.

The lobbying firm working with us on these issues has prepared some talking points you may wish to use in your contacts.

Please contact Dan Jaffe (djaffe@ana.net) in ANA's Washington, D.C. office at 202.296.1883 if you have any questions.

 

Â