The FDA ordered the company to "cease misbranding."34 Ms. Kardashian issued a corrective post the day after the FDA letter was received explaining the limitations of Diclegis and providing a link to obtain information about this prescription drug.The FDA has had a rough battle with trying to rein in the use of social media in advertising prescription drugs. The FDA's concern is that the posts do not adequately disclose the risks of prescription drugs. The problem it faces is the rapidity with which the information flows due to social media. The FDA does have celebrity endorsement guidelines, which include, among other things, that the celebrity must actually use the product being advertised. The celebrities must also indicate their relationship with the company. Ms. Kardashian West's statement indicated that she was "partnering" with Duchesnay. And, as in the Kardashian West ad, the celebrity cannot overstate the product's qualities or performance. If the statements are made independently by the celebrity, then the FDA has no control because the company is not participating. When a celebrity just posts that he or she uses a product and that it is a great product, the self-generated announcement is not FDAregulated. If there is, however, a connection with the company, whether through compensation or through the company providing the language for the celebrity endorsement, then the FDA can control the social media use. The FDA believes that celebrity endorsements serve to create consumer demand and patients pressuring doctors to prescribe certain drugs. The FDA worries that these prescriptions may not be in the best interests of the patient but are fueled through celebrity examples and endorsements. In the past, the FDA has halted celebrity social media endorsements for Adderall XR. For example, Ty Pennington's endorsement of that drug had to be changed because his endorsement focused only on the positive effects of the drug and did not disclose the risks and downside of using the prescription drug..............................

 Discussion Questions 

1. List the requirements for celebrity endorsements of prescription drugs to be allowed by the FDA.
2. What additional information does the FDA want in celebrity endorsements of prescription drugs?
3. What are the risks of product tweets? Do celebrities have a responsibility related to their tweets about products?