PhRMA Launches New Ad Campaign to Improve Biopharma’s Image

Pharmaceutical industry trade group, PhRMA, has unveiled a new multimillion-dollar ad campaign named GoBoldly. The ads will be featured on multiple media streams – including TV, print and digital – in an effort to repair the industry’s tarnished reputation after highly-publicized enquiries into drug price hikes.

“Thanks to the tireless work of biopharmaceutical researchers and scientists, we have entered a new era of medicine that is transforming the way we prevent and treat disease,” said Stephen J. Ubl, president and chief executive officer of PhRMA. “This campaign spotlights their perseverance and unwavering commitment to American patients for whom we all work. We will also be convening events with stakeholders all across the country to discuss ways we can work together to make our health care system more responsive to the needs of patients.”

The first GoBoldy ad – “Do Not Go Gentle” – features video of scientists at work compiled with images of cells and blood flowing through vessels. The ad also includes Dylan Thomas’ poem of the same name being read aloud over the images and video.

In response to an ad campaign Ubl is calling, “less hoodie, more lab coats,” ex-pharma CEO Martin Shkreli created a website aimed at airing some of the industry’s dirty laundry. Pharmaskeletons.com names 26 pharma companies and how they’ve negatively contributed to the current state of drug pricing in the US.

In a few weeks, the trade organization will release their next ad – “Cells” – which reportedly shows video of a cancer cell self-destructing. The new ad campaign sends a stronger message compared to PhRMA’s previous emotionally-driven “From Hope to Cures” campaign.

However, this new attempt by the industry to improve public relations makes no mention of changing the pricing practices which have become such a hot-button issue in the industry today. Instead the multiyear campaign will focus on the most exciting new advancements in science and medicine, value-driven healthcare and public health matters.