Alice, 35, is Not a Real Ambien CR Patient.
You've GOT to check out the new Ambien CR web site to witness what has to be a new low for "authentic" pharmaceutical marketing: patient testimonials from people who are "not...
Allergan’s Secret Plan to Thwart Homeland Security and the FDA Approval Process
I read with interest Jim Edwards' recent story about how "Allergan’s Eyelash Enhancer Makes Your Blue Eyes Brown."It appears that Allergan's strategy for expanding the market for Lumigan -- its anti-glacoma...
Chantix + Viagra = ChanGra-La for Pfizer?
A time-honored strategy pharmaceutical companies use to keep brands alive after patent expiry is to combine one brand with another to create a combination pill. Pfizer, for example, has combined Lipitor...
While Real Doctors Prescribe Placebos, Fake Docs on TV Prescribe Drugs Off-Label
Results of a survey published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) indicate that "about half of the surveyed internists and rheumatologists reported prescribing placebo treatments on a regular basis." Most often...
Allergan Doesn’t Comply with PhRMA Guidelines, Wins Kudos Anyway
Allergan, the specialty pharma company BEST known for its marketing of BOTOX, was voted the "Most Admired Specialty Company" in the Eighth Annual Med Ad News Most Admired Companies contest/poll/popularity contest.Allergan...
Free Samples: The Drug Rep’s Last Great Hope
According to some sales reps, after January 1, 2009 -- when new PhRMA Guidelines for Interaction with Healthcare Professionals (see PMN Reprint #77-01) go into effect -- samples may be...
Cutback in Prescriptions is a Sign of Pharma Recession
In the latest sign that the US pharmaceutical industry is in a recession, the New York Times reports that "through August of this year, the number of all prescriptions dispensed in...
Merck’s Goal: “One Less” Gardasil Marketing Problem
Merck is trying to market its cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil to women who may not benefit from it after U.S. sales shrank in July and August, according to a Bloomberg article...
eMarketers Make a Comeback Inside Pharma
Since the Internet bubble burst sometime around 2000-2002, eMarketers inside pharmaceutical companies have been systematically purged -- either they have been "integrated" into brand teams and effectively stymied or they have...
Results are In: Pharma Favors Obama
It's official! If the presidential election were held today, 55 percent of employees of pharmaceutical companies said they would vote for Mr. Obama and 28 percent said they would vote for...
