How should FDA regulate prescription drug promotion on the Internet?
The current scheme for regulating prescription drug labeling and advertising developed in a world in which information was centralized, static, and one-dimensional. Advertising was merely incidental to other activities such as reading magazines or watching programs. The Internet-wired world is different. Information is now instantly, globally accessible. Consumers can search through varied levels of detail on almost any topic. Anyone can join the fray by publishing their own materials on the Internet. This article addresses the unique problems raised by any proposed regulation of prescription drug labeling and advertising on the Internet. In particular, the article reviews the history, culture, technology, and popular uses of the Internet, and examines some of the models for regulation presented at an October 1996 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) conference on regulation of Internet content. Finally, the article suggests a new direction for regulation prescription drug promotion on the Internet.