Author Archive | Bob Ehrlich

Yes, DTC is 30 years old, not 18 as some say, thinking it started in 1997 after FDA liberalized television regulations. The FDA started to allow it in 1985 after lifting the moratorium on doing prescription drug ads. DTC spending was at a trickle in the late 1980?s and started to take off with a […]

Recently Opdivo from Bristol-Myers started television advertising for its advanced stage lung cancer indication. What Opdivo does is work with the immune system to help fight the lung cancer. Clinical studies show survival versus chemo of 9.2 months vs. 6 months among half the patients taking it. The ad, which is on the Opdivo web […]

With rising DTC expenditures it is clear all media segments have new opportunities for a piece of a larger pie. I have always been media agnostic in my job as advisor, publisher, conference organizer and writer of DTC columns. I know all media has its place in the marketing plan. Traditional media such as television, […]

I am concerned. DTC is under attack again by politicians and anti-drug company activists. While an outright ban is highly unlikely because of first amendment protections, it is possible to regulate DTC more and/or use tax policy to restrict its use. The FDA, under a Clinton or Sanders presidency, would likely be told to do […]

Jublia, from Valeant for toenail fungus, has made heavy use of the celebrity route in its advertising. First, they used tennis legend John McEnroe and now are adding talk show host Mario Lopez to the mix. Most of us remember Mario as Slater on Saved by the Bell.The Jublia ads are light in tone and […]

Outdoing Bernie is hard to do but Hillary seems to be more anti-drug company than the avowed socialist candidate. Hillary is tired of high drug prices. Here is someone that charges a public university $225,000 for a canned speech and is outraged at high prices from drug companies. Never let hypocrisy affect a good political […]

Bernie Sanders, the fast rising socialist/populist candidate for President, does not particularly like drug companies. He thinks they make outrageous profits and is for introducing legislation to cap prices. He will propose Medicare negotiate prices, something prohibited under the prescription drug act. He will also require disclosure of costs of developing drugs, and require transparency […]

There are no doubt some very expensive prescription drugs that have industry critics upset. Gilead has launched a hep C cure with pills costing one thousand dollars a pill for a three month daily treatment. Some cancer drugs cost $100,000 or more that extend life by a few months. Critics are pushing for government action […]

I kid you not. Kim Kardashian is the subject of an FDA warning letter to a drug company. OMG, and LOL! WTF! Kim decided to post on Instagram how great this morning sickness pill worked. It is called Diclegis from Duchesnay. Kim is paid to promote the drug but is not quite up to speed […]

We are hearing the term patient engagement a lot these days. It is the subject of many blogs, articles and conferences. But what is it? That depends on who is defining it. From a drug makers perspective patient engagement is getting prospective drug users to know about your disease category, drug and keeping them persistent […]