A. Menarini breached Clause 26.1 after third-party X post showed “Invokana canagliflozin tablets” at diabetes conference

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Key facts

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Case	AUTH/3853/11/23
Company	A. Menarini Farmaceutica Internazionale S.r.l.
Complainant	Member of the public (could not be contacted on the email address provided)
Channel	X (formerly Twitter)
Material	Photo of conference exhibition hall; “Invokana canagliflozin tablets” legible on stand
Medicine	Invokana (canagliflozin) (prescription only medicine for type 2 diabetes)
Main issue	Alleged promotion/advertising of a POM to the public via a public social media post
Applicable Code year	2021
Complaint received	15 November 2023
Case completed	20 January 2025
Decision	Breach Clause 26.1; No breach Clause 5.1
Sanctions	Undertaking received; Additional sanctions: Not stated
Appeal	No appeal

Reviewed by Dr Anzal Qurbain (FFPM) — ABPI Final Signatory

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A member of the public complained about an X (formerly Twitter) post showing a panoramic photo of a diabetes conference exhibition hall.
In the foreground, A. Menarini’s exhibition stand was visible and the wording “Invokana canagliflozin tablets” (brand + non-proprietary name) was legible.
The post was made from the personal X account of an employee of the events business organising the conference (not a Menarini employee and not at Menarini’s request).
The post caption included a conference-specific hashtag and the venue; the Panel considered the hashtag would direct users to diabetes-related content.
Menarini investigated, identified the poster via LinkedIn, contacted the events business, and the post had already been deleted.
Menarini stated the event was HCP-only, ticketed, and closed to the public with badge scanning; it also stated the events business staff had been trained and instructed not to post about pharma companies on social media.

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Breach of Clause 26.1 (Promoting a prescription only medicine to the public).
No breach of Clause 5.1 (Requirement to maintain high standards at all times).
No appeal.

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