What’s Not To Like? Facebook And The FDA

Last month, the FDA tagged a dietary supplement maker for a laundry list of infractions, but one item tucked away in a December 11 warning letter stands out. The agency complained to Amarc Enterprises that one of its products was ‘liked’ last year on its Facebook page. This was cited as one example of numerous testimonials that could be construed as claims that cause the Poly MVA supplement to be considered a drug. Specifically, the March 10, 2011 ‘like’ said this: “PolyMVA has done wonders for me. I take it intravenously 2x a week and it has helped me tremendously. It enabled me to keep cancer at bay without the use of chemo and radiation… Thank you AMARC,” according to the FDA letter. The effusive endorsement, however, is no longer visible and the entire Facebook page is about to be taken down. The issue, however, is that the FDA referred to a Facebook ‘like’ as a testimonial, because this may have real implications for the pharmaceutical industry. As Alec Gaffney of Regulatory Focus wrote, the “FDA’s interpretation that a ‘like’ implies endorsement could be a precedent-setting action by an agency that has been slow to issue a formal social media policy.” Indeed, this is the sort of move that will only make it more difficult for drugmakers to navigate social media – or not. The long-standing absence of a formal agency policy toward social media has only left marketers and product managers an...
Source: Pharmalot - Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: Tags: Uncategorized Facebook FDA JJ Johnson & Johnson Psoriasis Social Media Twitter Source Type: blogs