Eli Lilly has paused an obesity awareness campaign in India in response to a regulatory notice regarding advertising rules for prescription medicines, Reuters reports.
In March, India’s Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) published a notice clarifying that direct and indirect prescription medicine marketing is banned. CDSCO outlined the rules in response to alleged promotional activity. The agency named disease awareness, influencer engagement and corporate campaigns among activities that could break the rules if they drive brand recall or product visibility.
CDSCO reportedly wrote to Lilly around the time it shared the public notice. Weeks later, Lilly reportedly told CDSCO that it had paused its “We Know Now” obesity campaign “out of an abundance of regulatory caution.” The company launched the campaign last year to shift public perception of obesity from blame to understanding.
Asked by Fierce Pharma to confirm the Reuters story, a Lilly spokesperson said via email that the pharma company “works closely with regulatory authorities in India and respects the important role they play in safeguarding public health.” Lilly values “ongoing, constructive engagement with regulators” and remains focused on supporting health outcomes for patients across India, the spokesperson said.
Lilly’s disease-state education focuses “on helping patients and the public understand chronic diseases such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes” and doesn’t promote any specific medicine, the spokesperson said. The company designs and reviews the activities “to comply with all local laws, regulations and industry codes in each market,” the spokesperson added.
Lilly has published a series of videos as part of its “We Know Now” campaign. Some of the videos, which have been viewed millions of times, feature Indian celebrities. The ads convey the message that obesity is a chronic disease and feature the call to action “consult your doctor.” Lilly’s branding is used, but no products are mentioned. Lilly launched its obesity drug, Mounjaro, shortly before starting the campaign.
Last week, French authorities fined Lilly over a disease awareness campaign. The fine reflected the view that, while Lilly didn’t name its medicines, the campaign tended to encourage the general public to use Mounjaro, regardless of their weight and body mass index.
