"RealAge Online Quiz Sends Data To Drug Firms" | Arthritis Information

 

http://www.twincities.com/national/ci_11997504?source=rss

From the article:
"While few people would fill out a detailed questionnaire about their health and hand it over to a drug company looking for suggestions for new medications, that is essentially what RealAge is doing.

The test has received widespread publicity because of its affiliation with Dr. Mehmet Oz, a popular author and regular on "The Oprah Winfrey Show." Oz — "America's Doctor," as he is known on "Oprah" — is a RealAge spokesman

and adviser, and his simple approach to health is reflected in RealAge's message: You can change.

It has become something of a sensation in the marketing world. Many marketers, online and off, segment potential consumers within broad categories. But RealAge gathers very specific information and, unlike some tests, it gives its consumers an incentive to tell the truth — namely, a chance to live longer."

And this at the end:

"Literally millions of people have unknowingly signed up," said Peter Lurie, the deputy director of the Health Research Group at Public Citizen, a public interest group in Washington. The company, he said, "can create a group of people, and hit them up and create anxiety even though the person does not have a diagnosis."

I think some people might agree to participate in something like this, as a step towards personalized medicine.  It's too bad they were not transparent about this from the beginning.  And, at least the way it is portrayed in the article, it is leading to disease-mongering spam for current therapies, not new medications.

Has anyone taken the RealAge test and ended up with unwanted e-mails?

I took it and so has my spouse and neither of us have had no out of the ordinary health related spam, nor an increase in spam or any health or medication related emails.  Probably everyone gets the cheapest drugs and viagra spam and emails and it doesn't have anything to do with the posting.  Am interested in hearing if anyone has an increase.  LindyI took it too. No extra spam but I was disappointed to find I am 1 year 9 months older than my true age. [QUOTE=Suzanne]

Has anyone taken the RealAge test and ended up with unwanted e-mails?[/QUOTE]

Both RBT and I took the "test" and I just asked him if he had noticed any "disease-mongering spam for current therapies" and he said he still gets the deluged with spam re: penis enhancers and viagra, but nothing new. And the only ones I get that can be connected to the test come directly from the site and are ones I opted in to receive.

Has anyone contacted RealAge with the information from the article? If so, what kind of a response did you receive from them?

[QUOTE=Spelunker]

. And the only ones I get that can be connected to the test come directly from the site and are ones I opted in to receive.

Has anyone contacted RealAge with the information from the article? If so, what kind of a response did you receive from them?

[/QUOTE]

Here is a longer article (same reporter) that includes a response from RealAge:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/26/technology/internet/26privacy.html?_r=1&ref=health

"RealAge sends the selected recipients a series of e-mail messages about a condition they might have, usually sponsored by a drug company that sells a medication for that condition. “Our primary product is an e-mail newsletter series focused on the undiagnosed at-risk patient, so we know the risk factors if someone is prehypertensive, or for osteoarthritis,” said Andy Mikulak, the vice president for marketing at RealAge. “At the end of the day, if you want to reach males over 60 that are high blood pressure sufferers in northwest Buffalo with under ,000 household income that also have a high risk of diabetes, you could,” he said."

Also this:
"RealAge acts as the middleman between the drug companies and its members: it sends the e-mail messages from its own address and does not release members’ names or e-mail addresses to drug companies. That is because pharmaceutical advertisers are among “the most heavily regulated industries in the world, and they don’t necessarily want those e-mail addresses — they like that we’re a proxy for their messages,” Mr. Mikulak said."


It's good to be aware of this, I think.  "Focusing on the undiagnosed at-risk" -  it's amazing they can learn so much from an internet survey.  If you have a diagnosis, it makes more sense to me.
FiercePharma has posted on this subject now:

http://www.fiercepharma.com/story/realage-health-advisor-pharma-marketeer-or-both/2009-03-26?utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss&cmp-id=OTC-RSS-FP0
There's more!  Pharma Marketing Blog:
http://pharmamkting.blogspot.com/2009/03/dis-realage-all-you-want-ny-times-but.html

(If link doesn't work - try the home page - http://pharmamkting.blogspot.com/)

He says don't diss:
"Really? Are you sure "few" people would fill out a detailed questionnaire about their health and hand it over to a drug company?

It just so happens that a recent study by Epsilon concludes that 38% of patients they surveyed prefer to learn about pharmaceutical products via e-mail from a brand or a pharmaceutical company (see chart below and this excellent Dose of Digital Blog review by ePharma Pioneer Club member Jonathan Richman). That beats out offline (ie, TV) advertising."

But:

"There is, however, one catch. RealAge may know how to collect patient e-mail addresses, but do they know how to protect those addresses and other personally-identifiable health information?

I've worked with several agencies and web sites that collect consumer data on behalf of pharmaceutical companies and found that their internal policies and procedures often do not match the promises they make in their public privacy policies. That's how the FTC got Lilly to sign a 20-year settlement that requires the company to have ALL their agencies that handle consumer data on its behalf go through a rigorous privacy/security self-assessment. For more on this see "Good Privacy Practices."   "
Suzanne2009-03-26 11:52:08

Another view..

What other view? - he's agreeing totally with what the other Blogger said.  This is exactly the problem I have with the 'natural meds only' people - they're as bought and sold as Pharma.  The only difference that I can see is, in this case, it's not Steroid D. I simply said another view...not an opposing view LOVE this, from Lynn's link:

"Worse, RealAge acts as a clearinghouse, sending these e-mails from its servers using its own e-mail address. True, it appears that no identifiable information is used other than e-mail addresses, but I can't help but grudgingly admire the chutzpah of Dr. Oz going on and on about "natural" lifestyle solutions while at the same time he's the front man for a company that in essence works as a paid agent of big pharma to sell advertising for prescription drugs.

I wonder what Oprah will do when she finds out about this. By promoting Mehmet Oz, she's been helping to promote big pharma. I wonder if Jenny McCarthy knows. Some of these drug companies make vaccines, after all."

Follow the money, follow the money, follow the money.......

Oh, well...I have been played for a sucker before and most likely will be again. I raised to the floating bait and got snagged. Oprah doesn't take kindly to being duped.
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