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Advertising restrictions eased

The Medical Council’s new Ethical Guide has significantly eased restrictions on advertising by doctors, following lobbying by the Competition Authority.

The new guidelines have removed restrictions on the size, content and means of advertising, and specifies that the provision of information through the media, internet or other means can be considered in the public interest if it is ‘factually accurate, evidence-based and not misleading.

Doctors must also make sure that any advertisement is ‘true, verifiable, does not make false claims or have the potential to raise unrealistic expectations’.

The use of photographs or illustrations of the human body to promote cosmetic surgery, however, should be avoided, as they may raise ‘unrealistic expectations’ amongst patients.

The Competition Authority (CA) has welcomed the new guide, describing its publications as a ‘good day for consumers’.

“The new guidelines will make it easier for consumers to obtain information on the availability and price of medical services in their area. They will better enable consumers to make informed decisions on their choice of medical care,” commented Bill Prasifka, CA Chairperson.

The Authority’s concerns about restrictions on advertising were laid out in a formal submission sent to the Medical Council in 2007. In the document, the CA pointed out that ethical concerns did not provide a justification to restrict competition between medical practitioners excessively, either in terms of competitive rivalry between practitioners or entry of new practitioners into the market.

“The restraints on advertising are disproportionate and not to the benefit of patients,” it said of the previous guide, which had clearly stated that self-advertising was ‘unacceptable’.

“The current guidelines protect doctors, particularly established doctors, from competition and this is not to the benefit of consumers,” the 2007 submission added.

The Authority believed that attracting customers new to the market or existing customers of other suppliers was an ‘entirely normal and legitimate objective’, and part and parcel of competition for any commercial undertaking, including the supply of professional services such as medical services.

The submission to the Council had also recommended that the revised guidelines should more clearly support the prescribing of generic medicines and allow out-patient cross referral from one consultant to another. Both of these recommendations have now been incorporated into the new Ethical Guide.

Posted in Regulation on 27 November 2009
Tags: Medical Council