• Broadcasting & Cable, Wednesday, November 7, 2007 11:15 AM

A new bill introduced in Congress would give the Food and Drug Administration the authority to regulate over-the-counter drug ads, and to fine marketers that violate the rules. Currently, OTC ads come under the purview of the Federal Trade Commission's jurisdiction, with the FDA overseeing only those for prescription medications.

The "Non-Prescription Drug Modernization Act" was rolled out by Rep. Henry Waxman of California, Sen. Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, and Maine's Rep. Tom Allen--all Democrats--in response to an FDA advisory on banning over-the-counter cough and cold medicines for kids under six. They note that even if the FDA wanted to follow its own recommendation, there is a lengthy rule-making process during which the drugs could still be marketed.

The new bill would instead let the FDA quickly ban marketing of the drugs while that process is still underway. "We are all concerned about the cough and cold medications for children that have been in the news reports lately," says Adonis Hoffman, senior vice president and counsel to the American Association of Advertising Agencies. But he claims there are "ample and appropriate regulatory penalties in place to handle these problems. The authority of both the Federal Trade Commission and the Food and Drug Administration is intact. I'm not sure whether there is a need for new changes."

Read the whole story at Broadcasting & Cable »