Independent Medicines Information

Rational Use of Medicines

Prescription medicines require the expertise and supervision of qualified healthcare professionals. Treatment decisions should always be based on unbiased, accurate, and comparative information and patients should be free to make informed choices based on the most objective information and not the most effective advertising. Direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of prescription-only medicines is banned under Article 88 of the EU directive regulating pharmaceutical products. Yet, in the past decade, repeated attempts have been made to erode or eliminate the regulations, most recently under the guise of improving ‘information to patients’.

News

Apr 2012 - Joint Analysis on the European Commission's amendments to the proposals " 'Information' to the public on prescription-only medicines." Available in EN/FR.


1 Dec 2011 - The European Commission published its revised Directive proposal on “information” to patients about prescription-only medicines. HAI Europe, together with the Medicines in Europe Forum and the ISDB have released a response to the redrafted proposals which can be viewed here.


Background

Together with our partners, HAI Europe monitors the regulations that prohibit advertising and that govern medicines information in order to prevent promotional messages about prescription medicines.
HAI Europe's partners:

Policy Briefs & Reports

13 September 2010
Towards direct-to-consumer advertising on prescription drugs in Europe? Upholding patients’ rights to reliable information.
Read more in English and in French.