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The Australian government's drug regulator has revoked Roche [7]'s permission to advertise its weight-loss drug, Xenical [8]. It was originally approved as a prescription-only drug for those rating over 30 on the Body Mass Index (BMI), or 27 if other health conditions were present. Xenical was later approved for over-the-counter sale, prompting Roche to launch a direct-to-consumer advertising [9] campaign. In December, the Australian Consumer Association sent a woman [10] who was under 25 on the BMI to 30 Sydney pharmacies to request the drug. Twenty-four sold it to her, even though the medical guidelines stated it wasn't appropriate for her. Subsequently, a committee that advises the Australian government's drug regulator, found [11] that "there was insufficient public health benefit" from allowing further advertising. However, instead of reinstating Xenical's status as a prescription drug, the committee allowed continued over-the-counter sales.
Links:
[1] http://dev.prwatch.org/users/7/bob-burton
[2] http://dev.prwatch.org/topics/marketing/advertising
[3] http://dev.prwatch.org/topics/corporations/corporate-social-responsibility
[4] http://dev.prwatch.org/topics/health/obesity
[5] http://dev.prwatch.org/topics/pharmaceuticals
[6] http://www.addtoany.com/share_save?linkurl=http%3A%2F%2Fdev.prwatch.org%2Fspin%2F2007%2F03%2F5815%2Fweight-loss-drug-told-lose-advertising&linkname=Weight-Loss%20Drug%20Told%20to%20Lose%20the%20Advertising
[7] http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Roche
[8] http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/Xenical
[9] http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/direct-to-consumer_advertising
[10] http://www.choice.com.au/viewArticle.aspx?id=105435&catId=100231&tid=100008&p=1&title=Xenical
[11] http://www.tga.gov.au/media/2007/070222-orlistat.htm
[12] http://www.smh.com.au/news/business/regulator-halts-ads-for-weight-loss-drug/2007/02/26/1172338548085.html