In June of this year, Nature reported1 that Australia passed legislation allowing clinicians to prescribe MDMA and psilocybin for the treatment of mental health disorders, and it appears the FDA may approve MDMA in 2024. In parallel, U.S. lawmakers have been offering bipartisan support for the study of psychedelic medications in military treatment facilities. Representatives Dan Crenshaw (R) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D) recently succeeded in adding language to the National Defense Authorization Act to this effect.2
Once these currently banned substances become available for clinicians to prescribe, U.S. pharma marketers will be faced with a unique challenge: Do we market this new category of drugs to consumers via direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising, or do the circumstances demand a different approach to educational efforts?
Given the unique clinical trial protocols that combine very specific dosing of the psychedelic substances with pre- and post-session integrative talk therapy sessions, the need for clinician education is very clear. Plus, traditional clinician marketing efforts may be necessary to help overcome long-standing societal stigma. Top researchers from UCSD, UCI, and John Hopkins have documented this stigma and mention it as one of the key reasons for the relatively low number of ongoing clinical trials, and potential slow uptake if and when they are approved.3
The consumer side of the education versus marketing equation is very, very different. Psychedelic substances face a unique situation, spanning recreational and clinical use cases. One group of consumers seeks them out through non-clinical channels to use at their own discretion. But clinicians and patients are in search of new mental health treatments and want to use psychedelic medications just like other FDA-approved medications (i.e., only under the care of a licensed clinician).
Education vs. DTC
Intuitively, it seems valuable to educate both groups broadly on the unmet clinical needs in mental healthcare, psychedelic medicine principles, and the potential role of MDMA in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Patients with PTSD may benefit directly by engaging in new conversations with their clinicians. “Recreational” MDMA users may learn of a new therapeutic use of MDMA and potentially spread the word to friends and family who are struggling with mental health issues. Good all around in this regard.
However, as a thought experiment, imagine a DTC campaign for MDMA similar to what we see on TV, experience at sports events, and hear on podcasts. If done effectively, it might leverage celebrities and create MDMA demand broadly among the whole population—not just the clinicians and patients seeking new mental health treatments.
Hence, to avoid any unintended consequences of creating MDMA demand for recreational purposes in otherwise healthy people, it seems prudent to avoid DTC marketing campaigns and limit consumer outreach to educational programming only. In parallel, marketing would be limited to clinician-only messaging and channels.
To quote Fast Company co-founder Bill Taylor in his Harvard Business Review article4 about companies that made very predictable strategic mis-steps, “Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should.”
References:
1. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-02093-8.
