Crawford Voices Concerns About Truthfulness of DTC Ads

Acting FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford is keeping the pressure on firms' direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising practices, as some pharmaceutical companies already are moving to ensure their ads are more informative and balanced.

In a recent speech, Crawford pointed out some examples of ads he believes stretch the boundaries of what is acceptable. He has voiced concern with the direction of DTC advertising for some time now. Last November, he quipped that DTC ads show certain drugs that can change your whole way of life and "make you walk through meadows with the bees humming and copulating."

At the time, he said the FDA was working on a new physician-labeling rule that would require risk information to be placed higher on packaging. That change could also force firms to display risk information more prominently in print and broadcast DTC ads. A 30-second ad, for example, would have to refer to risks up front, he said. That rule has not yet been issued, according to the FDA spokeswoman.