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Trump fda cracks down on telehealth drug ads, glp-1s in the crosshairs

Posted by daph_l in Research & News - 3 points, 4 comments.

https://telehealth.org/news/hims-hers-faces-ftc-lawsuit-board-investigation-as-it-expands-globally

This ap piece covers the new fda memo targeting telehealth ads for drugs like glp-1s, with rfk jr and the administration pushing back on what they call misleading marketing from platforms like hims and hers.

Honestly i think this was bound to happen. The glp-1 telehealth space exploded so fast that regulation was always going to catch up, and some of those ads really were overpromising weight loss with little medical screening shown. At the same time it feels like the administration is using this to push their diet and exercise angle, which is naive for anyone who has actually struggled with weight or metabolic issues. Telling people to just eat right does not fix hormonal or insulin resistance problems, na?

The part im watching is whether this slows down legitimate access too. A lot of people i know in the us got their first glp-1 prescription through these telehealth platforms because their regular doctors either didnt prescribe or didnt know how. Do you think this crackdown will mostly hit the bad actors, or end up making it harder for normal patients to get treated?

Comments

  • weekend_macros: Good thread and you raise the right concern. My worry is the second part you mentioned, legitimate patients getting caught in the crossfire. The bad actors were easy to spot honestly. Ads promising massive loss with a quick online form, no labs, no follow up. That stuff deserved scrutiny. But if the fda pulls the rug on the whole telehealth prescribing model, the people who actually benefited from easier access end up back where they started, sitting in a waiting room hoping their gp even knows
  • daph_l: Yeah exactly that, the waiting room problem is what worries me too. My friend in ohio literally could not get her pcp to even discuss a glp-1, said it was "not in her wheelhouse" and told her to lose weight on her own. The telehealth clinic was the first time anyone took her fasting insulin seriously. If they shut that down and nothing replaces it, who catches those people? On the rfk part, i get why lifestyle matters, but the framing always sounds like obesity is a choices problem and not some
  • practical_reads: Imo the diet and exercise stuff is the most irritating bit. Nobody on these meds thinks it's a magic fix, and telling people to just eat less and move more when their hunger signalling is completely broken is grand in theory and useless in practice. The telehealth stuff needed oversight yeah, but lumping actual patients in with the dodgy ads is what gets me.
  • daph_l: Yeah exactly that part about lumping patients with the dodgy ads is what worries me too. Like yes the ads were overhyping things but the access part was genuinely helping people who couldnt get in to see an endo for months. If legitimate access slows down because of this crackdown thats a real loss, no?

Community discussion - research and educational context only. Not medical advice.