Prescription-only medicines (POMs) are subject to strict rules and cannot be advertised to the general public. This hub brings together our key guidance resources to help you understand and navigate the requirements. Whether you’re a practitioner, developing campaigns for healthcare professionals or simply reviewing existing materials, you’ll find practical advice here to ensure your advertising stays compliant.
Key Guidance
Webinar
CAP Webinar - Prescription only medications
The rules relating to the promotion of prescription-only medicines (POMs) are strict. In this webinar we explain what the rules mean in practice and the ways you can advertise your service - not the POMs - without breaking the rules or the law.
AdviceOnline Library
Our AdviceOnline library contains over 500 entries providing advice on interpreting the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing, supported by ASA case studies.
Healthcare: Prescription-only medicine – explains the strict rules around advertising prescription-only medicines (POMs) to the public.
Healthcare: Prescription-only Medicines (websites) – sets out how websites, particularly those for clinics and pharmacies, should present information about prescription-only medicines (POMs).
Insight Articles
Insight is CAP’s bi-monthly e-newsletter with articles offering advice on topical issues related to the CAP Code and advertising compliance. You can sign up to receive future email editions here - Our Newsletters.
Prescription for Compliance – POMs and the Code
It’s a fact – prescription-only medicines (whether it’s ‘Botox’, ‘Kenalog’ or any other POM) simply may not be advertised to the public and references to a POM, even indirect ones, are likely to amount to promotion of it. Read on to get the low down on what to avoid when you’re thinking of advertising a service that involves POMs.
Specific Guidance
We also have dedicated advice about the advertising of individual POMs. Amongst this advice are the Enforcement Notices we have published over the years, putting practitioners on notice when we have taken sector-wide action.
- Anti-Wrinkle Injections
- Weight-loss Injections
- Vitamin B & Vitamin D Injections
- Hay Fever Injections
- Erectile Dysfunction
- Hair Loss
- Sclerotherapy and other thread vein treatments
- Asthma
Anti-Wrinkle Injections
(Botulinum Toxin, Botox, Azzulure, Bocouture etc.)
Enforcement Notice
Enforcement Notice: Advertising Botox and other botulinum toxin injections on social media - provides guidance to businesses that offer botulinum toxin injections on social media platforms. Botulinum toxin injections are prescription-only medicines and as such cannot be advertised to the public.
Key Resources
Botox and non-surgical cosmetic interventions - includes short CAP Bitesize videos and a practical Dos and Don’ts guide explaining how to advertise Botox and other botulinum toxin injectables responsibly. It highlights key rules, such as the prohibition on naming Botox or using indirect references, sharing before-and-after photos, or using influencers, while advising marketers to focus on promoting consultations and non-prescription services.
AdviceOnline Library
Beauty and Cosmetics: Botulinum toxin (Botox) products - outlines the advertising restrictions for botulinum toxin products, which are classified as prescription-only medicines.
Health: Botox and Hyperhidrosis - focuses on advertising treatments for excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis), particularly where botulinum toxin (e.g., Botox) is involved.
Insight Articles
Smoothing out the wrinkles of advertising Botox
Botox is a prescription only medicine and that means it can’t be advertised to the public in any media - any ads doing that should be withdrawn or amended. Nonetheless, the ASA has also considered whether such ads are irresponsible or harmful for other reasons. Read on for more.
Botox FAQ
Read this article for answers to common questions about advertising Botox and other botulinum toxin injectables. It clarifies what marketers can and cannot say across websites, social media, and other platforms, including rules around price lists, terminology, imagery, and promoting consultations instead of prescription-only medicines.
Weight-loss Injections
(Wegovy, Mounjaro, Ozempic, Saxenda)
Enforcement Notice
Enforcement Notice: Advertising of prescription-only weight-loss treatments - jointly published with the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), this outlines the prohibition on the advertising of prescription-only medicines (POMs) to the public, with specific reference to POMs used for weight management.
AdviceOnline Library
Weight control: Prescription-only medicines - outlines the advertising restrictions for weight-loss treatments that are classified as prescription-only medicines (POMs), such as injectable medications.
Insight Articles
Trim down your weight loss medicine ads, doctor’s orders!
A weighty regulatory issue has risen up the ASA’s agenda - the ubiquity of ads for weight-loss prescription-only medicines (POMs). The advertising rules, reflecting the law, are clear, POMs are prohibited from being advertised directly or indirectly to the public. So, we’re prescribing this non-medicinal advice: tighten your creative belts to avoid getting ‘POM-elled’ by the regulator. Read on for more.
Vitamin B & Vitamin D Injections
Enforcement Notice
Enforcement Notice: Advertising vitamin shots (Coronavirus/Covid-19) - provides guidance to businesses that advertise “vitamin shots”. Licensed forms of injectable vitamin D and injectable vitamin B12 are prescription-only medicines (POMs) and as such should not be advertised to the public.
Insight Articles
Advertising Vitamin Drips – Injecting regulatory knowledge with a quick jab
This article provides all you need to know about the types of evidence marketers need to hold when making claims about the benefits of intravenous nutritional therapy (IVNT). So, don’t be a drip, prepare for a sharp scratch and receive a regulatory infusion.
Hay Fever Injections
(Kenalog)
Enforcement Notice
Enforcement Notice: Advertising of Kenalog injections – published in conjunction with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) this provides advice on the advertising of Kenalog injections on social media. Kenalog is a prescription-only medicine (POM) which must not be directly or indirectly advertised to the public.
AdviceOnline
Health: Allergy Claims - covers advertising claims related to allergy prevention and treatment, including for devices, food supplements, and prescription-only medicines.
Insight Articles
An Enforcement Notice not to be sniffed at – Kenalog injections
CAP and the MHRA have together published new guidance about the advertising of Kenalog, a steroid injection and prescription-only medicine, to the public via social media. When promoting services for the treatment of hay fever, advertisers must avoid making direct and indirect references to Kenalog. Read on for details and advice about how to comply.
Erectile Dysfunction
AdviceOnline
Health: Erectile Dysfunction - highlights the advertising restrictions around erectile dysfunction treatments that involve prescription-only medicines (POMs).
Healthcare: Viagra - explains the advertising rules around Viagra and similar erectile dysfunction treatments.
Hair Loss
AdviceOnline
Hair: Hair loss - covers advertising claims related to hair loss treatments, including shampoos, supplements, laser therapies, and prescription-only medicines like Finasteride and Minoxidil.
Sclerotherapy and other thread vein treatments
AdviceOnline
Health: Sclerotherapy and other thread vein treatments - addresses advertising for thread vein treatments like microsclerotherapy, which often involve prescription-only medicines.
Asthma
AdviceOnline
Health: Asthma - outlines the advertising rules for products and therapies claiming to treat or alleviate asthma. Prescription-only asthma treatments must not be advertised to the public, and marketers must avoid discouraging essential medical care.