TV Doctors Unite: Doogie Howser is Back in Scrubs as Cigna Reprises Its Fun 'TV Doctors' Campaign

It's been nearly 25 years since Doogie Howser doctored and diaried his way into our hearts. But now he's back and wants your attention—stat! That's right, Neil Patrick Harris is revising his role as Doogie Howser, M.D., to join Cigna's much-loved "TV Doctors" campaign, which debuted in 2016 with spots starring Patrick Dempsey (of Grey's Anatomy), Donald Faison (Scrubs), Alan Alda (M*A*S*H), Noah Wyle (ER) and Lisa Edelstein (House). The campaign from McCann New York is now back, with Dempsey and Faison both returning, alongside two other icons of fictional medicine: Harris and Kate Walsh, whose Dr. Addison Montgomery was a centerpiece of both Grey's Anatomy and the spinoff Private Practice. [kickout id="1"] In addition to new video ads featuring the TV doctors, the campaign will come to life on Instagram Stories as well, with a 24-hour branded content push coming this Sunday, Sept. 17. The goal of the campaign is to help prevent the 100,000 annual deaths estimated by the Centers for Disease Control as the result of failing to get a routine annual medical checkup. “Cigna is proud that our continuing efforts have helped raise awareness of the importance of preventive care, and have actually driven a 6 percent increase in preventive care visits among Cigna customers,” said Cigna vp of global branding Stephen Cassell. “We hope that hearing from our new 'TV Doctors' ensemble this fall will spur even more people to take action and schedule their annual check-up." The 6 percent increase cited by Cassell was based on a comparison of Cigna claims in September 2015 to September 2016, when the campaign debuted. While Walsh is a great addition to the campaign, it's a bit disappointing that the brand went with two Grey's Anatomy doctors when there are still so many medical dramas out there to call back to. Are Howie Mandel and Denzel Washington (OK, maybe just Howie) really so swamped that they can't reprise their roles from St. Elsewhere? Rob Morrow can't revisit Northern Exposure? Adam Arkin is too busy directing every show on TV to come back as Chicago Hope's Dr. Aaron Shutt? But of course, the jewel in the crown of Cigna's new medical monarchy is Neil Patrick Harris, who steals the show as always, and even gets his own spot about the importance of the word "stat": [kickout id="2"] In behind-the-scenes footage, the actors discuss both the importance of check-ups and some of the more challenging lines that TV doctors are supposed to memorize and rattle off with professional nonchalance: [kickout id="3"] CREDITS Client: Cigna Agency: McCann NY North American Chief Creative Officer: Eric Silver Co-Chief Creative Officers, McCann NY: Tom Murphy & Sean Bryan Executive Creative Director: Larry Platt Group Creative Director: Danny Rodriguez Senior Art Director: Jesse Yowell Senior Copywriter: Dan Colburn Copywriter (“Stat”): Josh Gold Chief Production Officer: Nathy Aviram Exec Integrated Producer: Kathy Love Senior producer: Cindi Blondell Senior Integrated Producer: Wendy Leahy Executive Music Producer: Eric Johnson Music Producer: Dan Gross Global Account Director: Veronica Bertran Group Account Director: Mat Cunnell Account Director: Colleen Moisio Account Executive: Mike Morettoni Asst. Account Executive: Emma Langston Group Strategy Director: Julianna Katrancha Senior Strategist: Justin Luk Strategist: Collin Peters Director, Broadcast Producer: Danielle Korn Dir Talent Partnerships: Kimberly Kress Production company: Untitled, Inc. Director: Grant Heslov Founder/Executive Producer: Jim Evans Director of Photography: Phedon Papamichael Editorial Company: Cut + Run Editor: Jon Grover Assistant Editor: Beau Dickson Music Company: JSM MRM//McCann SVP Group Account Director: Jan Lemke Account Director: Clifford Strashun Account Supervisor: Jay Cohen Associate Director of Project Management: Charelle Shaw Project Manager: Jennifer Yuan Associate Project Manager: Connie Tejada Associate Director of Social Media Strategy: Lisa Goldberg Social Strategist: Amanda Zanghi Art Directors: Astrid Andujar/Cheryl Thrower EVP Chief Creative Officer: Sung Chang Creative Director: Emmeli Osterdahl, Laurie Messina Copywriter: Regina Strong, James Santiago Client: CIGNA Lisa Bacus - EVP, Global Chief Marketing & Customer Officer Stephen Cassell - VP, Global Branding Jen Hayward – Director, Brand Marketing Paulina Riccio - Branding Specialist Gloria Barone Rosanio - Cigna Corporate Communications

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Doogie Howser Is Back in Scrubs as Cigna Reprises Its Fun 'TV Doctors' Campaign

Private Practice's Kate Walsh also joins the lineup

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