The ASA has announced an updated enforcement notice, outlining the ban on advertising prescription-only medicines (POMs) to the public, specifically referencing POMs used for weight management.
This update, published by the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), is due to concerns about the advertising of POMs used for weight management.
What does this ban apply to?
This notice applies to ads for POMs used for weight management in all media, including on social media platforms and online.
This includes:
• Paid-for ads on social media, such as image or video ads on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok • non-paid-for organic content on pharmacies’ and other providers’ own social media channels
• Paid-for ads on search engines such as Google
• Influencer marketing
• Affiliate ads
It is against the enforcement to include the names of POMs in ads, therefore prohibiting using brand names, generic names, or active ingredients in an advertisement for weight loss products or services.
The enforcement also bans using descriptors or descriptions that are likely to be understood by consumers as referring to a POM, including:
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“Weight Loss Injection”
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“Weight Loss Pen”
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“Obesity Treatment Jab”
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“GLP-1”
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Abbreviated words that refer to POMs, such as “SemaPen”
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Descriptions that identify the product in question
It is also stated that it is against the enforcement to use imagery in ads that is likely to be recognisable by consumers as a POM.
The guidance advises against directing consumers from an ad, seemingly for non-POM products or services, directly to another ad promoting a POM.
Professionals can promote weight loss consultation, as long as this does not mention any weight loss POMs.
Professionals should review any existing advertising and ensure that any weight loss advertisements do not reference any weight loss POMs.
How will the notice be enforced?
The notice sets out the enforcement actions that the regulators can take against advertisers and businesses that do not comply with the notice.
The CAP Compliance team uses the ASA’s AI-assisted Advice Ad Monitoring system to actively scan for ads that breach this enforcement notice.
This may result in sanctions, including the removal of content and social media accounts. When appropriate, advertisers may be referred to a statutory regulator for further sanction.
The MHRA can monitor advertising in medicine, and it can investigate complaints about advertising. It is expected that advertisers will work with the MHRA to issue acceptable advertising; however, the agency can resort to formal statutory powers laid down in the Human Medicines Regulations.
GPhC guidance states that pharmacy owners and the superintendent pharmacist should follow the law and guidance on the advertising and promotion of medicines. Failing to comply with these standards could result in the GPhC taking enforcement action. This could be against the pharmacy, the pharmacy owner, the Superintendent Pharmacist, or all three. They could also investigate the fitness to practise of all the pharmacy professionals involved.
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