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Rep. Henry Waxman wins battle

In a shift that portends more difficulty for pharmaceutical marketers next year, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) was elected today by House Democrats as the next chairman of the House's Energy and Commerce Committee, the important Congressional committee that has oversight of the Food and Drug Administration.

Waxman earlier this month challenged current committee chairman Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) for the chairman's role. On Thursday, he won a secret ballot vote, 137-122, among Democrats in the House. The selection of Waxman signals “a leftward turn for the Democratic agenda,” The Hill reported in a story posted to its Web site earlier today. The newspaper also noted Waxman's win represents a victory, “at least in perception,” for House leader, Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

For pharma, however, Waxman stands as a significant threat to direct-to-consumer advertising, which he has long opposed. Waxman in the past proposed legislation calling for mandatory pre-clearance of DTC ads, and for a moratorium on new-drug ads for two to three years. Waxman also is likely to play a key role in President-elect Barack Obama's effort to create a national healthcare program. When Rep. Dingell chaired this House committee, he called a hearing to question marketers on leading DTC brands, including Lipitor and Vytorin, in May of this year, and then sought strict voluntary controls on marketing from the companies that testified at that hearing.

“If Rep. Waxman does become chair, we have to be prepared for immediate scrutiny on FDA matters,” Adonis Hoffman, a general counsel of the American Association of Advertising Agencies, told reporters earlier this month. “DTC becomes front and center.”

DTC INSIGHT:
As tough as he's been on pharma, Rep. Henry Waxman will not be able to shut down DTC advertising, but as chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee he certainly will be able to make life more difficult for marketers and media companies. Indeed, you can count on more hearings on DTC advertising in 2009. Waxman "is no friend of DTC advertising," as one Washington insider noted recently. It's also possible that Waxman will make an effort to bring OTC advertising under the purview of the FDA next year, which could further slow healthcare-related marketing efforts.