Viagra gets green light to advertise

Pfizer will soon be able to advertise Viagra, the brand synonymous with male virility, in the British consumer press.

This follows the Government’s recent move to extend the number of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines (MW May 17, 2001), which will mean opening doors to consumer advertising for medicines that were previously available only on prescription and thus not allowed to be advertised.

At the moment, Viagra is a prescription-only medicine (POM) in the UK and is used to treat erectile dysfunction.

Recent proposals by the Medicines Control Agency, the regulatory body of the pharmaceutical companies, include the suggestion that medicines used for erectile dysfunction be moved from the POM to OTC category of pharmacy product. New procedures for applying for category changes will come into effect in April. It is expected that Viagra will be available through OTC pharmacies in less than a year after the application procedure has started.

Viagra is believed to be in talks with footballer Pelé about a global advertising campaign.

Levonelle, the morning-after pill from Schering Health Care, which switched from POM to OTC pharmacy last year, started its first UK consumer ad campaign this month (MW last week). The pill is being advertised in women’s glossies including Cosmopolitan and Glamour (MW January 24).

The European Commission’s draft directive on herbal and complementary medicines questions the use of Chinese and Ayurvedic remedies. One of the clauses in the directive states that ingredients in herbal remedies must have been in “traditional use” inside Europe for at least 30 years. This will mean that if there has been no real use of an ingredient in these remedies, the products will be denied access to the market.