[Ip-health] Direct-to-consumer advertising revisited by European commission

[Michelle Childs]

Direct-to-consumer advertising revisited by European commission, =93D=E9j=
=E0-vu
all over again=94?

The proposal to weaken the EU=92s ban on advertising prescription-only
medicines to the public was overwhelmingly rejected by the European
Parliament in 2004. Yet, only two years later the European Commission
=93openly regrets=94 this decision and calls for a reform of the European
pharmaceutical products=92 legislation. HAI Europe deplores this move to
reopen the direct-to-consumer advertising debate.

Health Action International Europe (HAI-E), the International Society of
Drug Bulletins (ISDB), the Association Internationale de la Mutualit=E9
(AIM), the Bureau Europ=E9en des Unions de Consommateurs (BEUC), and the
Medicines in Europe Forum (MiEF) have endorsed a joint declaration on the
provision of relevant health information to citizens, to be presented on
the occasion of the meeting of the European=92s Commission Pharmaceutical
Forum.

Considering that health information is a fundamental and necessary part of
healthcare, the organisations call for a clear distinction between
information and advertising disguised as =93information=94. They warn of th=
e
inherent conflicts of interest of pharmaceutical companies which are
unable to provide unbiased comparative information on available drug and
non-drug treatment alternatives.

For more information, please read the press release
http://www.haiweb.org/01102006/PressReleasePatientInformationDeclaration.pd=
f

 or download the declaration.

http://www.haiweb.org/01102006/PatientInformationDeclaration.pdf


--
Michelle Childs -Head of European Affairs
Consumer Project on Technology in London
24, Highbury Crescent, London, N5 1RX,UK.
Tel:+44(0)207 226 6663 ex 252.
Mob:+44(0)790 386 4642. Fax: +44(0)207 354 0607
http://www.cptech.org

Consumer Project on Technology in Washington, DC
1621 Connecticut Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20009 USA .Tel.:
+1.202.332.2670,Fax: +1.202.332.2673

Consumer Project on Technology in Geneva
1 Route des  Morillons, CP 2100, 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland
Tel: +41 22 791 6727