Bill Maher HBO Special rips pharma

Jul/26/2007 06:02 Filed in: DTC Environment
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Bill Maher is far to the left, no doubt about that, but he is feeding on voter anguish about what is going on in this administration. Included in his attacks on the establishment were attacks on big pharma (in governments pockets), Vioxx, Avandia and Cialis. DTC marketers had better take note that consumers are more mistrustful of big pharma more now than ever and that ANY message that is developed is going to be held up to scrutiny like never before.



The Bill Maher special was taped in Boston and from the moment he stepped on stage you knew he was going to rip into the powers that be. About halfway through his rants and raves he started in on big pharma saying that they were in the pockets of Congress. Now he also complained that lobbyists were truly controlling Congress with their cash payoffs but he went further on big pharma talking about how drugs may be "killing us" For example he said "Vioxx cures your arthritis by potentially killing you" and that "Avandia raises the chance for heart attack by 45%...that's 45% I call that significant!". But he spent most of his time attacking the Cialis spots "when the right moment turns to the tender moment". "Your married for God's sake every moment is supposed to be the right moment so you don't need to walk around with an all day boner".


DTC marketers take note: While Bill is a comedian his discontent is spreading among the masses. The messages that we develop are going to be harder to get through because in addition to the clutter you now have a more educated, skeptical consumer who has more power than ever before. That consumer is going to research your product, probably on the Web, read message boards and BLOGS before deciding if it is right for them. Yes the physician used to be the gate keeper and patients did what he or she suggested but with more stories coming out about physicians in bed with pharma that may change as well.


I personally believe that fair balance should be changed to include a statement about ongoing clinical trials and the possibility of new side effects that were unreported in clinical trials. People are going to find out anyway so why not be more transparent about issues that may effect the brand?


DTC marketers had better wake up to the reality that consumers are demanding transparency at every level of the organization and even when you start down this road you may not walk fast enough in an era of information empowered patients and consumers.
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