FGDP urges botox ad compliance

Advertising prescription-only medicines (POMs) to the public breaches the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 as well as the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) Code, even when they are to be administered by a registered healthcare professional. The CAP and Advertising Standards Agency have announced that from 1 February 2020, they will use automated technology to identify non-compliant social media posts, which if not removed could result in referral to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and/or statutory professional regulators such as the GDC.

To aid compliance, the MHRA and CAP have issued new guidance which applies to all social media promotion of botox, including paid-for ads, non-paid-for marketing posts and influencer marketing. The guidance says there can be no direct references to a prescription-only medicine or treatment, whether via a brand name, brand-like name or in the generic, including in images and hashtags or in promotions such as sale packages and competition prizes. Indirect references such as ‘anti-wrinkle injections' are also banned.