Pfizer Healthcare Management

Executive Summary

You might remember when Pfizer had a Direct-to-Consumer advertisement on television broadcast featuring the distinguished Dr. Robert Jarvik being introduced as the inventor of the artificial heart. He was rowing a boat on a lake and turned towards the camera saying, “Just because I’m a doctor doesn’t mean I don’t worry about my cholesterol”. He then recommends consumers use Lipitor, an anti-cholesterol drug, and continues to row across the lake to show his confidence in his health. This was a very effective advertisement that was part of a $260 million campaign put together by Pfizer. This advertisement, however, was depending on the consumers not knowing that Dr. Robert Jarvik was not actually a licensed medical doctor, not licensed to prescribe medicine, and not the actual inventor of the artificial heart. This is the world of Direct-to-Consumer advertising.

Direct-to-consumer advertising is only legal in two countries in the world, the United States and New Zealand. DTC advertising has only been on legal in the United States since 1985 but did not really become a major part of the drug companies’ advertising efforts until 1997 when the FDA loosened its stringent requirements for DTC advertising. Although regulations have only been enforced for the past few decades, drug advertisements directed at consumers have made appearances as early as the 18th century. Medicines were advertised in newspapers in the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, often times with misleading information. Even by the early 1900’s, these drug advertisements did not face regulation because laws that did exist at that time concerning pharmaceuticals only applied to the actual product labels. The loosened requirements in 1997 along with the growing preference of health maintenance organizations preferring generic cheaper prescription drugs over the expensive name brands led to the drug manufacturers shifting their focus of sales directly to the consumer...