Pfizer brings back Lipitor ads following probe

Artificial heart inventor replaced

Pfizer's new ads for Lipitor feature talent agent John Erlendson, who suffered a heart attack at age 57. (JB Reed/Bloomberg News)

NEW YORK - Pfizer Inc. resumed television ads yesterday for the cholesterol pill Lipitor, the world's top-selling drug, six months after stopping commercials featuring artificial heart inventor Robert Jarvik that led to a congressional investigation.

The new ads use California talent agent John Erlendson who suffered a heart attack at age 57 after not taking drugs for his high cholesterol. Pfizer slated the commercials to begin airing during ABC's "Good Morning America."

Pfizer halted its last Lipitor ad campaign in February after a congressional committee began investigating whether the ads deceived consumers because Jarvik, who isn't licensed to practice medicine, gave medical advice. Pfizer is counting on the new ads with a real patient to boost Lipitor prescriptions, which fell 15 percent in the United States since the Jarvik ads stopped.

"John is a user of Lipitor who was willing to appear in an ad," said Jim Sage, senior director of Pfizer's Lipitor marketing team. "John really resonates with the audience because he provides a wake-up call."

Erlendson, 58, was paid an actors' union wage of $1,400 a day while the ads were filmed, Sage said. The commercials, titled "Never Thought," shows Erlendson cycling near a river and picnicking with his family while an announcer promotes Lipitor's safety and effectiveness. The ads devote 15 seconds to Lipitor's side effects and 45 seconds to benefits.

Pfizer wouldn't say how much it plans to spend on the ads or how frequently they will run. The world's largest drug maker, spent $181 million advertising Lipitor last year, making it the fourth-most-advertised drug, according to market research firm Nielsen Monitor-Plus. Pfizer paid Jarvik $1.35 million for the earlier campaign.

Lipitor, Pfizer's most important product, had sales of $12.7 billion last year, about a quarter of company revenue. US Lipitor sales have been slipping since 2006, when cheaper copies of a similar cholesterol pill, Merck & Co.'s Zocor, came on the market.