By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    HIPPA compliance
    How Medical Office Staff Can Make Your Practice HIPAA Compliant
    October 29, 2021
    Everything you need to know about hyaluronic acid treatment
    Everything you need to know about hyaluronic acid treatment
    February 10, 2022
    Which Mushroom Capsules Are Good for Your Health?
    May 5, 2022
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Having Purpose Adds Years to Your Life
    June 28, 2011
    Can Light Affect Your Health?
    July 29, 2011
    Extending the Frontiers: Working Despite Alzheimer’s and Campus Smoking Bans
    September 1, 2011
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Legal Concerns: What Steps can Pharma Take to Engage in Social Media?
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > eHealth > Social Media > Legal Concerns: What Steps can Pharma Take to Engage in Social Media?
Social Media

Legal Concerns: What Steps can Pharma Take to Engage in Social Media?

Barbara Ficarra
Barbara Ficarra
Share
4 Min Read
SHARE

.

This is the second part of a three part post addressing the legal concerns of social networking in the health care arena.

Legal expert, David Harlow, Esq., Health Care Attorney and Consultant at The Harlow Group, LLC in Boston, address the issues.


.

This is the second part of a three part post addressing the legal concerns of social networking in the health care arena.

Legal expert, David Harlow, Esq., Health Care Attorney and Consultant at The Harlow Group, LLC in Boston, address the issues.

More Read

In-Place Patient Decontamination Training
The Sacred Duty of a Mommy Blogger
Wing of Zock to Host Next Health Care Social Media Review
More Than a 50/50 Chance, the Emergence of the e-Patient
Big Data: What It Means for Science, Healthcare and Social Media

What Steps can Pharma Take to Engage in Social Media?

Q:  Barbara: After speaking at a recent pharmaceutical conference, the pharma industry is concerned with the legal implications of social media; and it appears that pharma is waiting for guidelines from the FDA.  David, what steps can pharma utilize to engage in social networking without specific guidelines from the FDA?

A:  David: Pharma companies are, for the most part, extraordinarily risk-averse, and reasonably so.  They live in a heavily regulated environment, and a misstep can have potentially disastrous consequences in the form of sanctions imposed by the FDA and the attendant negative publicity.  Pharma is concerned about being able to provide “fair balance” in social media, about the possibility of having users post information about adverse events that would be reportable to the FDA (though research has shown that only about 1 in 500 AEs posted via social media are in fact reportable AEs, and the leaders in this arena all say that they would rather learn about AEs sooner rather than later in general – the challenge is finding the resources needed to monitor adequately).  That said, there are some pharma companies that have decided they can structure an approach to social media that is compliant with FDA requirements.  There are guideposts that must be observed in all communications by pharma companies, and while social media tools are different in kind from the channels that have come before, we should be able to take a commonsense approach to extrapolating from past rules and regulations, and warning letters, and the like, in order to plan for appropriate efforts to engage the public via social media.  In particular, pharma companies that are successful in this sphere have brought together communications, legal, regulatory and compliance folks, and have come up with guidelines for different sorts of interactions.  Thus, for example, a blog post does not require a six-week review before it is posted if it is within the in-house guidelines’ “green zone.”  For now, most pharma social media is limited to unbranded communications, though there are a number of companies using Facebook and Twitter to put across their messages in a controlled manner that remains compliant with the law.

About David Harlow, Esq.

David Harlow, health care attorney and consultant, principal at The Harlow Group LLC in Boston, who blogs at http://healthblawg.com and may be found on Twitter at http://twitter.com/healthblawg.

Your Turn

We would love to hear from you.   Consumers, would you engage online with pharma companies? Are you a pharma company that engages in social media?  Please share your experience with us.

As always, thank you for your valuable time.

Follow Barbara on Twitter

Follow David on Twitter

Related Posts

What are the Legal Implications for Doctors, Nurses and Hospitals Engaging in Social Media?

3 Reasons Why Social Networking Is Not a Waste of Time for Health Professionals

A Brilliant Reason to Dive Deep into the Social Media Health Space

Social Media: Medical Social Networking – Part 2

TAGGED:FDAhealthcare lawpharmasocial media
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025
engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

Medical Device Connectivity: Lessons from a Recent Recall

December 19, 2011
eHealth social media
eHealthSocial Media

MyHealthTeams CEO Eric Peacock on Social Media in Healthcare [Part II]

November 6, 2013

Likes, Fans and Followers: 5 Ways to Create a Winning Facebook Page for Your Hospital

October 12, 2016

How Digital and Social Media Transforms Medical Journal Publishing

July 31, 2013
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?