FDA recently announced yet another delay in the release of its first draft guidance to pharmaceutical companies regarding the use of social media. In the meantime, the UK regulator, Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (“PMCPA”) released an informal guidance on digital communication. Rather than develop new rules, the PMCPA issued an 11 page Q&A document that points to specific clauses in the ABPI Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry that apply to all communications, including digital communication. The guidance poses 12 questions related to the use of digital communication, such as the use of search engine optimization, blogs, and Wikipedia, and provides simple, direct responses.
Click here is a link to view a pdf of the PMCPA Q&A document.
Does this informal Q&A provide UK pharmaceutical companies with sufficient guidance regarding the permissible use of digital communication? Will the FDA follow PMCPA’s lead and issue an informal guidance on social media and digital communication that relies on existing promotional guidelines and regulations? Would the US pharmaceutical industry benefit from an informal Q&A guidance on the use of social media rather than the issuance of specific regulations?
C'mon America. Catch up!
Or are you waiting for a Tweet!
Posted by: jason @ cinnamon agency | 07/14/2011 at 07:40 PM