Durbin, Sanders, Warren, Welch Release Investigative Report On Pharma's New Direct-To-Consumer Telehealth Platforms

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) along with U.S. Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Peter Welch (D-VT) released an investigative report titled “Big Pharma’s New Sales Scheme: Expanding Patient Access or a Virtual Pill Mill? A Direct-To-Consumer Telehealth Platform Investigation.”
Over the past nine months, the Senate offices have investigated new telehealth platforms launched by pharmaceutical manufacturers Pfizer and Eli Lilly with telehealth companies they have paid: Populus, UpScriptHealth, Form Health, Cove, and 9amHealth. These novel relationships between drug companies seeking to sell their medications, and the telehealth companies hand-picked by these pharmaceutical giants, appear intended to steer patients toward particular medications. As the pharmaceutical industry floods the airwaves with commercials to increase demand for high-cost medications, these new telehealth platforms appear intended to churn out prescriptions to patients with just a few clicks online.
“Sick of advertisements urging you to ‘ask your doctor’?  It gets worse.  Big Pharma’s newest sales scheme funnels patients to telehealth companies chosen and paid by the drug companies, seeking to influence prescription pads,”said Durbin.“Our findings shine a light on potential conflicts of interest and inappropriate prescribing that can balloon health care spending and lead to inferior care for patients. With these revelations, we must crack down on Big Pharma’s latest ploy to promote and sell expensive medications at the expense of patients and taxpayers.”
“Big Pharma continues to use shady tactics to squeeze patients and line its own pockets. While we’re working to lower costs for families, these giant companies seem to be propping up new telehealth platforms just to push their own drugs on patients who might not even need them. We need to hold Big Pharma accountable and stop this abuse of power,”said Warren.
“Telehealth is a powerful tool in medicine, but consumers deserve telehealth services that put the care of the patient before drugmakers’ profits. Big Pharma’s marketing executives shouldn’t be influencing medical care—whether provided in the doctor’s office or online,”said Welch.
In October 2024, the Senators sent aletterto the CEOs of Pfizer and Eli Lilly in October demanding answers about the pharmaceutical companies’ recent move to establish new DTC telehealth platforms. Following that letter, in March 2025, the Senators sentlettersto five telehealth companies that have held contracts with Pfizer and Eli Lilly, inquiring about their financial relationships and possible influence on prescriptions for medications from those two pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Telehealth can help to address barriers to care for patients, especially with under-treated diseases. But absent comprehensive services that ensure a thorough evaluation and follow-up, and with a direct linkage to a pharmaceutical company’s profit motives, high-quality telehealth and its access for patients can be undermined.
Key findings and takeaways from the Senators’ report include:
For a PDF copy of the Senators’ report, clickhere.
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