Food, Pharma, and the Future

Today we’re diving into a health care policy and focusing in on the Make America Healthy Again Commission, or the MAHA Commission. It launched in 2025, and its recommendations reach deep into pharmaceutical marketing and prescriber engagement.

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• How the MAHA Commission Could Influence Pharmaceutical Marketing and Prescriber Education

About the author

• Matt Quinn, Ph.D. 

Transcript

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Host 1:

Hello and welcome back to the show! Today we’re diving into a health care policy and focusing in on the Make America Healthy Again Commission, or the MAHA Commission. It launched in 2025, and its recommendations reach deep into pharmaceutical marketing and prescriber engagement.

Host 2:

Yeah, and we’re talking about more than just kids’ health, we’re taking a look at how pharma companies communicate, how clinicians get educated, and even how consumers learn about treatments. There’s a lot packed into this one.

Host 1:

Let’s start with direct‑to‑consumer drug ads, or DTC ads. The U.S. and New Zealand are the only high‑income countries that allow them. And in the U.S., spending on these ads has skyrocketed over the past few decades.

Host 2:

Right, and the MAHA Commission is taking a hard look at that whole ecosystem. In a recent report, it calls for increased oversight from Food and Drug Administration, Health and Human Services, the Federal Trade Commission, and even the Department of Justice. They’re specifically targeting misleading ads, influencer marketing, and DTC telehealth companies that don’t communicate risk information properly.

Host 1:

The Commission says egregious violations, especially ones involving harm or deceptive digital content, should be enforcement priorities. That’s a pretty strong signal.

Host 2:

But the Commission also sparks debate, because DTC advertising isn’t all bad. There’s a good body of research showing it can actually help patients.

Host 1:

Exactly. DTC can improve patient awareness, encourage people to seek care, and even increase adherence to medications. It can help close treatment gaps by prompting conversations that may not otherwise happen.

Host 2:

And it can strengthen the physician‑patient relationship, too. Sometimes a commercial gives a patient the language they need to start a conversation.

Host 1:

Now let’s move to prescriber education. Pharmaceutical companies fund a big portion of continuing medical education in the U.S. That funding helps clinicians stay up to date on new therapies and evolving standards of care.

Host 2:

But MAHA argues that transparency needs to improve. They want clearer disclosures of who sponsors what, and stronger separation between marketing content and educational content.

Host 1:

And that could reshape how companies invest in consumer education. 

Host 2:

If the MAHA recommendations take hold, they could really change the playbook for pharma marketers. Companies may need stronger compliance programs and more careful risk‑benefit communication.

Host 1:

On the prescriber side, companies may invest more heavily in independent education to meet transparency expectations.

Host 2:

One part of the strategy that’s easy to overlook is that MAHA is also targeting food marketing. They want HHS and the FTC to explore guidelines that limit direct marketing of what it considers unhealthy foods to kids.

Host 1:

That includes social media imagery, claims that make foods seem “healthier” than they are, and other tactics that influence children’s decision‑making. It’s basically applying the same scrutiny to food that they’re applying to pharmaceutical ads.

Host 2:

Companies that adapt early will probably be in the best position to navigate this new regulatory environment.

Host 1:

Exactly. Well, that’s it for today’s episode. If you found the information helpful, remember to subscribe and share.

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