In this episode, HBW Insight catches up with IQVIA Consumer Health’s vice president of global consulting services, Amit Shukla, to find out how the global consumer healthcare market is performing as it comes out of the pandemic. It’s good news, Shukla reveals, based on the firm’s latest intelligence. The market grew double digits in 2022 and is predicted to expand by 5-6% per year in the future - even faster if some of the innovative switches currently in the pipeline succeed. Shukla points to artificial intelligence, sustainability and popular wellness ingredients as trends to watch that will drive future market growth.

European consumers can now buy Futura Medical's Eroxon erectile dysfunction gel without a prescription online, and in person via Belgian pharmacies. Further country launches, supported by advertising and promotional campaigns, remain on track during the coming months, Futura says. However, the US launch, expected for Q1 this year, has been delayed while the firm answers questions posed by the FDA.

Day after releasing Q4 and full-year results, Perrigo announced launch of next chapter in its “3/5/7” makeover strategy. It reached annual growth of 3% for top line revenues in phase 1, aims for 5% operating income and 7% earnings per share growth in phase 2.

FY2023 OTC monograph user fee target facility fee revenue is $25.4m from manufacturers’ fees of $26,153 and contract manufacturers’ fees of $17,435, all due by 1 June. OMOR fees are $517,381 for Tier 1 requests and $103,476 for Tier 2.

A round-up of the latest appointments in the consumer health industry: the Global Self-Care Federation elects J&J's Raghunandanan as its chair; Bayer Consumer Health makes changes to its medical leadership; and Shop Apotheke hires ex-DocMorris CEO to lead company.

Haleon's partnership with Microsoft to include 1,500 of the former's products in the latter's Seeing AI application – which reads aloud information on packs for the visually impaired – is an example of how digitalization can help to make healthcare more inclusive, according to vice president and global head of healthcare professionals and health influencer marketing Tess Player.

Day after releasing Q4 and full-year results, Perrigo announced launch of next chapter in its “3/5/7” makeover strategy. It reached annual growth of 3% for top line revenues in phase 1, aims for 5% operating income and 7% earnings per share growth in phase 2.

The growth of its nine power brands helped Haleon outstrip its sales guidance in 2022. While operating profit also improved, the firm was unable to hit its margin guidance, a miss it blamed on adverse transactional foreign currency.

Reckitt recorded a £152m impairment charge for Biofreeze in 2022 after the topical pain relief brand underperformed in the first half of the year. Despite issues for Biofreeze, Reckitt's Health business as a whole had a strong showing over the 12 months, with sales jumping by 19%.

Marketers of copies of national brand OTCs are required under FDA regulations to use the same labeling as the brand, a rule that in effect has limited complaints in California state court alleging Prop 65 violations with nonprescription drug labeling to targeting branded product marketers.

Whether California court finds Zantac, when marketed containing ranitidine, should have had a Prop 65 label warning could be influenced by dismissal in federal court of class action complaints due to faulty research behind claims that ranitidine causes a carcinogenic substance to form post-production.

Sales authorized for first test providing at-home results including differentiating flu from COVID. Lucira gets EUA for its COVID-19 & Flu Test two days after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, indicating it would seek buyer.