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Sunday, February 24, 2013

FDA Targets Website Search Results in Warning Letter

From ePharm Rx blog--

In case you missed it, an FDA warning letter issued late January addressed the issue of how website searches associate keyword searches with search results. In other words, when a visitor to a compnay's website searches the website for a certain condition such as cancer or diabetes, if a product name displays in the results, then this is an implication that the product treats that condition. According to FDA, the company that owns the website can be liable for this association.

The letter was issued to “MDR Fitness Corp,” a vitamin and supplements company that, according to its website, applies “the latest discoveries about nutrients and how they benefit the human body.” MDR, by the way, stands for “Medical Doctors Research.” The warning letter cited additional problems such as a failed facility inspection, the promotion of supplements for conditions which cause the products to be drugs, and overstated personal testimonials. 

Buried in the letter – but highlighted by this article from Forbes– was this information:
“ … typing the key word “cancer” or “diabetes” into your product search field located on your website brings up your product lists to include Fitness tabs for Men, Longevit – E and others, implying your products are intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of such diseases. Your products are not generally recognized as safe and effective for the above referenced uses, and therefore, the products are “new drugs …”

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