Rx to OTC switches become even more important in the current era where responsibility for healthcare is being assigned to consumers. In new scenarios where consumers are making important decisions about their care, we must first improve the problems of access to and costs of medicines. Increasing the availability of appropriate over the counter medicines helps ease the burdens of cost and access.

The strategy and execution of a successful Rx to OTC switch requires assurance that consumers can self-diagnose, self-treat and self-manage on their own and that the drug has low potential for misuse and abuse. Demonstrating that a medicine should switch from prescription to over the counter requires the help of a cross functional team including regulatory, clinical, and marketing. DGE’s Rx to OTC Switch Symposium provides an excellent opportunity to bring your team together to talk about the latest challenges and opportunities in switches including human factor studies to help prevent misuse of products, digital tools to enable switching in more difficult categories, and the impact of increasing use of telemedicine on the potential for a switch.