As Seen on TV, an occasional column, brings you the inside story behind TV drug ads.
If the orange-and-white pills sold as Lyrica for nerve pain were their own standalone drug company, they’d be the industry’s sixth biggest advertiser.
Pfizer spent an estimated $343 million-plus last year advertising the blockbuster drug to patients with fibromyalgia and diabetic nerve pain. Only Bristol-Myers Squibb, AbbVie, Eli Lilly, and Allergan spent more on their entire ad budgets.
Pfizer’s big push on Lyrica led the charge in a year that saw prescription drugs advertisers ramp up their spending to an estimated $5.7 billion. That’s up from an estimated $5.2 billion in 2015.
About the Author Reprints
Once we get FDA approval to do product placement advertising on your favorite TV shows nary a half hour will go by when you won’t be exposed to our “beautiful landscapes”.