Tag: health

Advertising, Health, Marketing, Pharmaceutical

Abbott Labs Pays $1.6 Billion for Illegal Drug Marketing

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Abbott Laboratories, the maker of Ensure, PaediaSure, Similac and Vicodin, pled guilty to misbranding and illegally marketing its drug Depakote. Abbott will pay a $1.6 billion fine and undergo five years of probation under an agreement reached with the U.S. Department of Justice in which Abbott admitted that from 1998 to 2006 it kept a separate, specially-trained sales force to market Depakote to nursing homes for the control of aggression and agitation in elderly patients with dementia, even though no credible scientific research existed showing Depakote was effective for that use. Abbott also admitted that from 2001 through 2006 it marketed Depakote for the treatment schizophrenia, in the absence of any proof that the drug was effective for that condition, either. Abbott funded two separate studies on the use of Depakote for schizophrenia, but neither study met its set goals. Abbott took two years to tell its sales force about the failed studies, and in the meantime kept marketing Depakote for schizophrenia. The case against Abbott arose in 2007 when a former Abbott saleswoman filed a lawsuit accusing the company of encouraging  its sales force to illegally promote use of Depakote in nursing homes and publicly-operated mental health centers, where most patients are covered by federal health programs like Medicaid. Whistleblowers also filed suits against Abbott in Virginia, Illinois and the District of Columbia accusing the company of paying illegal kickbacks to doctors and pharmacists to discuss off-label uses of Depakote to increase sales.

Main source: Courthouse News Service, May 7, 2012

Children, Corporations, Corruption, Environment, Ethics, Health, Safety, Tobacco

Philip Morris and Monsanto Sued over Birth Defects in Tobacco Farmers’ Children

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Screen shot from Monsanto's website

Tobacco farmers in Argentina filed a lawsuit (pdf) against Monsanto and Philip Morris for requiring them to use herbicides and pesticides that caused a high rate of severe birth defects among their children. The farmers charge that Philip Morris and the subsidiary companies that bought their crops required the farmers to stop growing their native tobacco grow a new kind of tobacco instead that Philip Morris uses in its cigarette formulation for the North and South American markets. The new tobacco they had to grow required more pesticides, and the farmers had to use excessive amounts of Monsanto’s glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup — but the defendant companies did not warn them about the dangers of the herbicide, or provide the farmers with safety information about the chemical or any protective gear to wear when applying it.

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Grassroots advocacy, Health, Religion, Women

“Clergy for Choice” Calls for 40 Days of Prayer for Abortion Rights

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Logo of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice

A religious group in Humboldt County, California is initiating a new, pro-choice grassroots movement in support of abortion rights called “40 Days of Prayer Supporting Women Everywhere.” Clergy for Choice offers a message of support for women dealing with reproductive issues, including pregnancy.  A 2-page, tri-fold brochure describing the effort (pdf) says, “We are religious leaders who value all human life. We trust you to decide about your sexuality & planning your family. Humboldt County Clergy are available to talk with you about the spiritual aspects of sexuality and reproductive choice.”  The back of the brochure lists daily prayers supporters are urged to make on each of the 40 days, like: Day 1: “Today we pray for women for whom pregnancy is not good news, that they know they have choices,” Day 11: “Today we pray for better access to all forms a birth control.” Day 22: “Today we pray for women in developing nations, that they may know the power of self-determination. May they have access to employment, education, birth control and abortion.”

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Advertising, Consumer advocacy, Health, Marketing

FDA Orders Sexual Dysfunction Warning Added for Merck Baldness Drug Propecia

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If your hairline is receding and you’re are thinking about taking Merck’s baldness drug Propecia, you might want to think again. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ordered drug maker Merck to change the warning labels for Propecia and its prostate drug Proscar to include “libido disorders, ejaculation disorders and orgasm disorders,” conditions that FDA notes may continue well after patients stop taking the drugs.  While FDA says it isn’t clear whether finasteride, the active chemical in Propecia and Proscar, is what causes the persistent sexual problems, side effects reported by those using the drugs “suggest a broader range of adverse effects than previously reported in patients taking these drugs.” FDA approved Proscar in 1992 and Propecia in 1997.  Since then, the agency has reviewed 421 post-marketing reports of sexual dysfunction from those taking Propecia between 1998 and 2011. Of those, 59 cases described sexual dysfunction lasting a minimum of three months after discontinuing Propecia. FDA reviewed 131 reports of similar problems associated with Proscar. In 2011, FDA ordered the warning labels of both product be revised to include erectile dysfunction that continues after patients stop taking the drug.  People can report adverse side effects of prescription drugs to FDA’s MedWatch hotline at 1-800-332-1088, report them online at MedWatch Online or through the U.S. mail using the MedWatch form (pdf) available at FDA’s website.

Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration, April 11, 2012

Advertising, Health

NFL Players Promote Adult Diapers

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NFL football players endorsing products for money isn’t new, but DeMarcus Ware of the Dallas Cowboys, Wes Welker of the New England Patriots and Clay Matthews of the Green Bay Packers have all agreed to try on “Depend” adult undergarments and promote them by wearing them on the field — and on camera — while running drills.  Kimberly-Clark, the maker of Depends, has a new ad campaign called the “Great American Try On,” in which American celebrities and sports icons wear the underwear in public in exchange for hefty donations to selected charities. Sexy actress Lisa Rinna appears in a new ad in which she announces she is wearing the company’s new “Silhouette” product under a slinky, form-fitting black dress while walking the red carpet with her husband. 

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Advertising, Consumer advocacy, Corruption, Health, Marketing, Safety

Johnson & Johnson Fined $1.2 Billion for Illegal Drug Marketing

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The state of Arkansas has ordered Johnson & Johnson and one of its subsidiaries, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, to pay $1.2 billion in fines for deceptively marketing the antipsychotic drug Risperdal, approved to treat conditions like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The companies were accused of failing to provide adequate warning about potential side effects of the drug, which include diabetes, weight gain, neurological problems and increased risk of strokes and death in elderly patients with dementia.   Fletch Trammell, a lawyer in the case who had used Risperdal, said that J&J hid studies that showed Risperdal caused diabetes at a higher rate than a competing drug. The court also found nearly 240,000 instances in which the companies violated the state laws against Medicaid fraud, with each count representing one prescription for Risperdal written to a state Medicaid patient over a 3 1/2 year period. The fine for the Medicaid fraud portion of the case, at $5,000 per prescription, was the state’s minimum.  A 12 person jury deliberated for three hours before finding against J&J. Arkansas is just one of several states suing over Risperdal. South Carolina and Texas have already reached settlements with J&J in their lawsuits. J&J plans to appeal the Arkansas ruling, claiming it did not break the law and that the package insert that comes with the medication was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Main source: New York Times, April 11, 2012

Consumer advocacy, Food, Health

Campaign Urges Hospitals to Evict McDonalds Restaurants

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Corporate Accountability International (CAI), a group that challenges corporate abuses, posted an  open letter on its website asking hospitals that house McDonalds restaurants to end their contracts with the fast food chain to “stop fostering a food environment that promotes harm, not health.” The letter points out that the rates at which children suffer from diet-related illnesses like diabetes are “staggering,” and the problem is related in part to the consumption of junk food. Locating McDonalds stores in  hospitals is part of a marketing strategy, CAI says, that is aimed at imparting an aura of healthfulness to the food — a goal that is inconsistent with the goals of a health institution.  “Health professionals are devoted to caring for sick children and adults and to preventing illness. But these efforts cannot compete with the profit-driven mechanisms by which McDonalds and the fast food industry operate their business, and the toll that McDonalds’ practices have had on children’s health,” the letter states. CAI’s petition to get McDonalds out of hospitals is here.

Advertising, Health, Lobbying, politics, Safety

Billboard Campaign Promotes Marijuana Legalization in Colorado

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A big new billboard has appeared right over a liquor store near Mile High Stadium in Denver that shows a mainstream, straight-laced looking woman smiling with her harms folded, saying, “For many reasons, I prefer…marijuana over alcohol. Does that make me a bad person? RegulateMarijuana.org.” The board is the first in an educational campaign by backers of the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act, a measure that will appear on the state’s November election. The group backing the measure seeks to educate people about the ways that marijuana is safer than alcohol, specifically that it is less addictive than alcohol and tends to cause fewer adverse health effects. Users also cannot overdose on marijuana. The measure would permit limited possession and cultivation of marijuana by adults, and would let state and local governments in Colorado regulate the commercial production and distribution of marijuana or ban marijuana sales completely within their jurisdictions. On its website, the pro-legalization campaign says, “We are not suggesting that marijuana is better than alcohol … We are simply asserting that there are many good reasons to use marijuana instead of alcohol.”

Corporations, Front groups, Health, Tobacco

Transnational Tobacco Companies Target Poor Countries

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Thai child smoking (Photo from Thailand-th.net)

A new study reveals PR strategies transnational tobacco companies use behind the scenes to derail, delay and undermine public health policies in low- and middle-income countries. The authors uncovered six core strategies tobacco companies use in Thailand to interfere in tobacco control policymakin: (1) doing business with “two faces,” (2) working to influence people in high places, (3) “buying” advocates inside grassroots organizations, (4) putting up deceptive fronts, (5) using intimidation, and (6) undermining controls on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. The companies often apply several of the strategies simultaneously. Public health advocates in poorer countries have successfully counteracted these strategies by remaining vigilant to spot them, excluding tobacco companies from policymaking, restricting cigarette sales, keeping up pressure on the companies and working to assure adequate resources are dedicated to enforcing tobacco control regulations. The entire text of the article is available free in PDF form here.

Source: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, March 27, 2012 (pdf)

 

Education, Health, Tobacco

Vivid Anti-Smoking Ads Prompt Flood of Quitline Calls

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On March 19, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) started a new print and television ad campaign called “Tips from Former Smokers” that features real people offering tips on how to live with diseases caused by smoking or secondhand smoke. Ads show survivors of oral and throat cancer, strokes, amputations and heart attacks. The former smokers give tips like how to bathe, shave and get dressed with their conditions. The ads show amputees putting on their prosthetic limbs, and heart attack and lung cancer survivors show their surgical scars. The ads also show other grisly results of smoking that most people rarely or never get to see. The campaign has more than doubled calls to CDC’s quit line. From March 12 – March 18, the period just prior to the start of the ad campaign, the quit line got 14,437 calls. Between March 19 and March 25 — after the ads started running — the quit line got 34,413 calls. The ads are tagged with the number 1-800-QUIT-NOW, a toll-free number where smokers can get free quitting information and support.  Visits to CDC’s quit-smoking website, www.smokefree.gov, have tripled since the campaign began.

Advertising, Marketing, Media, Tobacco

In-Your-Face Ad Leverages Smoker Frustration to Sell E-Cigarettes

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Ad leverages smokers' frustration to sell e-cigarettes

The maker of the “blu” brand of electronic cigarette is hoping smokers will respond to a particularly aggressive ad campaign that exploits their frustration and anger to sell more of their product. The ad’s  headline that says, “Dear Smoking Ban.” Beneath the headline is a photo of an angry older, middle-aged woman flipping her middle finger at the viewer. The ad text links smoking to freedom, a psychological construct long used by the tobacco industry to counteract the understanding that nicotine causes a powerful addiction that robs smokers of control over their tobacco use. The ad text says, “Take back your freedom to smoke anywhere with blu electronic cigarettes. blu produces no smoke and no ash, only vapor, making it the smarter alternative to regular cigarettes. It’s the most satisfying way to tell the smoking bans to kiss off. Okay, maybe the second most satisfying way.”  Electronic cigarettes contain nicotine, but since they don’t actually burn tobacco, they don’t contain as much of the hazardous byproducts of burned tobacco.