while most consumers regularly rely on nonprescription medicines for self-care,thepandemic - which began in 2020 - accelerated major shifts in consumer behavior,intensifying over-the-counter (oTC) usage and purchasing.More importantly，thepublic health emergency caused consumers to find new ways to advocate and care forthemselves through the use of virtual doctor visits，apps and telemedicine. Thesemassive shifts in consumer behavior caused a never-before-seen surge in sales foroverall consumer healthcare (CHC) products. This paper examines the implications ofthese behavioral changes on the market and considers the following key trends andtheir effects on the Rx-to-OTC switch:

Rx-to-OTC switching has been going on for over 40 years,and most of the obviousswitches,including pain medications such as Advil and allergy relief such as Claritin,Zyrtec,and Flonase, have been brought to market. The switch candidates thatremain as future possibilities,including erectile dysfunction，migraine and antiviralinfluenza medications,are significantly more complex and will require many yearsand millions of dollars of investment to accomplish.

Even after all these years, however, some OTC marketers see switch as a lucrativeengine for growth as switch brands often reach annual retail sales levels in excess of$100 million or more, such as Advil (ibuprofen), which was launched in 1984 andhad retail sales of $679 million in 2021.

Switch offers the additional opportunities for companies to innovate,increase self-care and wellness for consumers,improve public health and reduce costs on thehealthcare system.