The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)’s annual medical advertising report shows a decrease in complaints received last year.
Although complaints dropped to 193, down from 283 from the previous year, the report entitled ‘Delivering high standards in medicines advertising’ detailed serious breaches in regulations by healthcare bodies.
Johnson & Johnson filed a complaint to the MHRA concerning a TV advertisement produced by Omega Pharma for Bronchostop, a traditional herbal medicine licensed on the basis of evidence of traditional usage that wrongly suggesting the efficacy of the treatment had been demonstrated.
Another complaint lodged to the MHRA cited a meeting for healthcare professionals, where medicines were promoted and attendees were expected to make a ‘minimum’ purchase, which is not in line with the law.
Beryl Keeley, head of the MHRA’s advertising standards unit, commented: “People have the right to know that the advertisements they see are accurate and do not contain any information that could be misleading and that is why we and the self-regulatory bodies take the action that we do.
“In the coming year, we expect to vet advertising for around 50 products to promote a ‘right first time’ approach and protect against misleading messages in advertising.”
Complaints to the MHRA are resolved through voluntary agreements, by companies either correcting or removing their adverts without the need for further regulatory action.