Attorney General's News Release

October 16, 1996

Missouri, 18 other states reach agreement with drug company, Arthritis Foundation on pain reliever claims

Jefferson City, Mo. — Missouri is one of 19 states that will split more than $1.7 million in an agreement with drug manufacturer McNeil-PPC and the non-profit Arthritis Foundation over an advertising campaign that the states believed misled and confused consumers about McNeil's pain relief products, Attorney General Jay Nixon announced today.

As part of the agreement, McNeil will pay $90,000 to each state to fund consumer protection and education. McNeil also will pay $250,000 to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, an agency of the National Institutes of Health, for the purpose of conducting or supporting scientific research related to arthritis prevention.

Nixon said the concerns of the states focused on a nationwide advertising campaign that began in October 1994 and continued through May 1995 for four analgesic products made by McNeil and sold under the Arthritis Foundation name. The four products were:

• Arthritis Foundation Pain Reliever, Aspirin Free
• Arthritis Foundation Pain Reliever, Safety Coated Aspirin
• Arthritis Foundation Pain Reliever/Fever Reducer, Ibuprofen
• Arthritis Foundation Pain Reliever/Sleep Aid

“In its advertising campaign, McNeil targeted arthritis sufferers with claims that the products themselves were 'new' and 'doctor recommended,' and that the Arthritis Foundation had helped created them,” Nixon said. “While the Arthritis Foundation brand may have been new, the active ingredients in these pain relievers were chemically identical to the active ingredients found in other over-the-counter analgesic products.”

McNeil also had represented in its ads that with each purchase, consumers would be supporting the Arthritis Foundation or contributing to finding a cure for arthritis. Nixon said the ads did not disclose that McNeil had agreed to pay a minimum of $1 million annually to the Atlanta-based foundation in exchange for using its trademark, and that each consumer purchase would not necessarily increase the amount of McNeil's payment.

“The Arthritis Foundation is a respected, recognized name in the field of arthritis research, which may have compelled some consumers to purchase the products for that reason,” Nixon said. “McNeil was going to pay the Arthritis Foundation a substantial amount of money under the licensing agreement, no matter how the product sales went, a fact that was not disclosed in the marketing campaign.”

In addition to the payments to the states and the National Institutes of Health, McNeil and the Arthritis Foundation agreed that future advertising for the products would not:

• Represent that the Arthritis Foundation pain reliever products are “new” or recommended by doctors or that the foundation helped to create the product.
• Represent that a portion of the proceeds from sales will go to the Arthritis Foundation or to fund arthritis research, unless financial details of the agreement between McNeil and the foundation are clearly disclosed.
• Represent that the Arthritis Foundation pain reliever products are “especially formulated” or contain a different formula than other over-the-counter oral analgesic products.

Nixon said Missouri's $90,000 share would go to the Missouri Merchandising Practices Revolving Fund, which is used to offset the costs of consumer law investigations and to further consumer education.

The other states besides Missouri that signed the agreement with McNeil and the Arthritis Foundation are Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Wisconsin.

Inquiries from consumers should be directed to consumer@ago.mo.gov or 1-800-392-8222 (from within Missouri) or 573-751-3321 (outside Missouri).

All media inquiries should be directed to Press Secretary John Fougere.

E-mail      Phone: 573-751-8844         Fax: 573-751-5818