Topline
President Donald Trump signed an order Tuesday aimed at tightening restrictions on direct-to-consumer drug advertising, expanding his administration’s scrutiny against big pharmaceutical companies and their business practices.
Trump in his order blasted increasing rates of drug advertising, saying Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will ensure transparency and accuracy in drug ads, “including by increasing the amount of information regarding any risks associated with” advertised pharmaceutical drugs.
Trump also directed Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary to enforce advertising regulations and “ensure truthful and non-misleading information in direct-to-consumer prescription drug advertisements.”
The FDA said in a statement it is sending thousands of letters warning pharmaceutical companies to remove misleading advertisements and issuing about 100 cease-and-desist letters to companies it says are airing deceptive ads.
The FDA did not disclose which companies received the cease-and-desist letters, but an unnamed Trump administration official identified to CNN a Super Bowl ad for weight loss drugs as an example of its targets.
Social media companies and influencers paid to promote pharmaceutical offerings without proper disclosures will also be targeted by the federal government, according to CNBC, which cited unnamed senior officials.
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Kennedy suggested banning pharmaceutical advertising on TV prior to last year’s election. However, Tuesday’s order stops short of an outright ban against the advertising.
Trump has sought to reduce drug prices and put pressure on big pharmaceutical companies to do so, demanding the companies in July to drop prices by the end of September. The companies include pharmaceutical giants like AbbVie, Eli Lilly, Pfizer and Novo Nordisk, with the president’s demands aligning with his "most-favored-nation" drug pricing policy, which aims to reduce U.S. drug prices to the lowest prices paid by consumers in other developed countries.
Pharma Companies Should Immediately Cut Down Drug Prices, Trump Says (Forbes)