The Faculty of General Dental Practice (FGDP(UK)) is encouraging dentists and dental practices offering botulinum toxin injections to ensure their marketing is legally compliant.
From 1 February 2020, the Committee of Advertising Practice and Advertising Standards Agency will use automated technology to identify non-compliant social media posts, which if not removed could result in referral to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and/or statutory professional regulators such as the GDC.
Advertising prescription-only medicines (POMs) to the public breaches the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 as well as the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) Code, even when they are to be administered by a registered healthcare professional.
To aid compliance, the MHRA and CAP have issued new guidance which applies to all social media promotion of botox, including paid-for ads, non-paid-for marketing posts and influencer marketing.