Congress Probes Celebrity Drug Ad Endorsements

Jan. 10, 2008 — -- Anyone who's watched TV in the last few months has probably seen the ads.

A kindly "doctor," Robert Jarvik, inventor of the artificial heart, tells viewers about the benefits of Lipitor, the cholesterol-lowering medication. The ubiquitous commercial, along with previous ads, helped make Lipitor the best-selling drug in the world, with almost $13 billion in sales in 2006.

Those ads, and their use of celebrity endorsers, like Jarvik, are now being investigated, for potentially misleading viewers, by Reps. John D. Dingell, D-Mich., and Bart Stupak, D-Mich.

Critics of the drug industry have long claimed that such ads emotionally manipulate viewers, and underemphasize the potential side effects of drugs.

The congressional probe focuses on the Lipitor ads, but is likely to examine other spots, such as actress Sally Field's endorsement of the osteoporosis drug Boniva, according to staffers for the House's Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

"We are concerned that consumers might be misled by Pfizer's television ads for Lipitor, starring Dr. Jarvik," said Dingell, in a statement. "In the ads, Dr. Jarvik appears to be giving medical advice, but apparently, he has never obtained a license to practice or prescribe medicine."

Stupak added, "Americans with heart disease should make medical decisions based on consultations with their doctors, not on paid advertisements during a commercial break."

In a letter to Pfizer CEO Jeffrey B. Kindler, the congressmen asked for records related to the Lipitor advertising campaign, contractual arrangements with Jarvik, the veracity of the claims made by Jarvik, and his professional qualifications.

Jarvik, 61, who invented the first successful permanent artificial heart, which was implanted in a patient in 1982, founded his own company in New York City. According to New York State Department of Education records, he is not licensed to practice or prescribe medicine in New York state.