Posted on 01/22/2008 3:47:20 PM PST by frogjerk
Dr. Robert Jarvik is known as the inventor of the artificial heart more than 20 years ago.
More recently he’s known as the pitchman for Lipitor, a top-selling cholesterol-lowering drug.
Now Dr. Jarvik is known as the man congressional investigators want to talk to about his work for drug maker Pfizer, maker of Lipitor.
At $12 billion in sales a year, it’s the best selling drug in the world.
Dr. Jarvik tells the television audience in the ads, “I’m glad I take Lipitor, as a doctor and a dad.”
The problem is that Dr. Jarvik is not licensed to practice medicine and cannot prescribe medicine. He did go to medical school but chose science and research over becoming a practicing physician.
Robert Jarvik appeared on “Good Morning America” today to answer critics who say he should not be pitching a drug as a doctor who cannot prescribe medicine because it's misleading consumers.
“Our ad campaign with Pfizer is an educational one,” he said on television Wednesday. “Lipitor is the most widely prescribed drug in the country. For every prescription there is a doctor writing it. It’s a huge vote of confidence.”
Jarvik says it’s clear he is not a practicing physician. He declined to say how much he’s made from the ads other than to say it would be “considered a lot by most people”.
Dr. Jarvik says he did take Lipitor before he began pitching for Pfizer. But lending his credibility to create the impression he is prescribing the drug is the question that Michigan Representatives John Dingell and Bart Stumpak want to explore further.
In a letter to Pfizer, Dingell asks, “Is he entitled to appear here and prescribe or give the impression he can prescribe prescription pharmaceuticals for patients? I think the law in every state says no, he’s not, because he can’t prescribe medicine in any state we can find.”
The representatives want records that prove Jarvik takes or took the medication.
Pfizer responds that Dr. Jarvik is a professional who is well-respected and advises consumers to speak to their own physicians about heart health.
Celebrity product pitches are big business. Sally Field advertises Boniva, Sen.. Bob Dole voiced support for Viagra. Drug companies spend about $4.8 billion every year on advertising.
But using a doctor to pitch drugs may be an ethical line that shouldn’t be crossed.
“We’re looking to see if there is wrongdoing but also we’re looking to see if the law needs to be changed to give us a better level of protection for the consumers,” Rep. Dingell says.
Lipitor’s patent expires in 2010 and Pfizer does not have a replacement ready to market. #
In Ohio, the board has to approve and they usually don’t, especially if there is a financial interest. The general rule around here is avoid endorsements altogether. It is not above the board to harass even if you follow the letter of the law.
Tell these douche bags that this doesn't concern them and find a way to lower my taxes. Assholes.
Interestingly, Dr. Jarvik really is a doctor, and not a phoney one (Ph.D.). Dr. Jarvik is an M.D., he simply went into research instead of becoming licensed to practice medicine.
I can’t understand why they use Jarvik as a spokesman. The guy invented a device that was a complete failure. I don’t have any medical training but I’ll bet my artificial heart wouldn’t kill more than 100% of recipients.
My point is if Jarvik believes in the product, why “forbid” him from endorsing it? He is a very knowledgable guy. I find it hard to believe he’d lend his good name to some snake oil.
The real question is what credibility these two a$$holes have. On ANYTHING.
I know, and frankly, I don’t care that he’s not a licensed clinician. He probably knows more than the average MD practicing out there. This thread just prompted an old memory, that’s all.
Sorry Jarv, but it's not clear. From the beginning of your commercials I was always under the impression you were not only the inventor of the artifical heart but also a heart surgeon. There's nothing in your commercials that would lead me to believe otherwise.........
He’s Wilford Brimley. He has diabetes. Thank God his diabetes supplies come in a discreet brown wrapper. Lest any of his neighbors know he has diabetes.
Unless he is practicing medicine without a license, what exactly is the problem here?
Did he go and draft Britney Spears to be a patient?
Next up: Getoverittia, for people with hangups, such as the one about who exactly is pitching the prescription drugs.
Ask the Medical Board. They got more rules than I care to think about and some contradict with others. All I know is you don’t want them in your office.
And there you have it. The economy's heading into the crapper, Iran may be building a nuke to wipe out Israel, and the AMT may gobble up tens of millions more people next year, BUT they're concentrating on whether Dr. Jarvik is giving the mistaken impression of being an M.D. That's our wacky Congress!
Well, he may not be a Babe MagnetTM, but as long as he can make money doing this stuff, why not?
Hell, there are RNs who understand drugs better than most of the doctors who are licensed to prescribe them.
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