Prescription Drug Advertisement Analysis

Direct-to-consumer (DTC) marketing of pharmaceuticals has grown increasingly in the past decade. The American public views prescription drug advertising for a wide range of medical conditions, including high cholesterol, depression, allergies, and erectile dysfunction. The Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates the content of these advertisements. Critics also have taken the position that the advertisements garner unearned trust from the public, are misleading, and promote unnecessary use of prescription drugs for common problems associated with aging. Proponents counter that DTC ads help eliminate stigmas associated with certain medical conditions, give patients an active role in their health care management, and

Most countries don't allow drug companies to advertise directly to patients. In the United States, however, direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of prescription drugs is completely legal. The article "Should prescription drugs be advertised directly to consumers?" questions the validity of this decision and provides several different examples of the advantages and disadvantages of DTC prescription drug ads. There are both positives and negatives associated with the advertising of prescription drugs.

Commercialized on TV as the only solution to our numerous problems, Big Pharma preys on people who struggle through life. Although seemingly meant to heal, pharmaceutical drugs have destroyed countless American lives instead because gullible patients rush to their doctor demanding prescriptions. Want to lose weight? Give me a pill. Want more intense sexual encounters? I need a pill. Want to grow longer, shinier hair? Hey, I’ll just pop a pill. Although some medical conditions do require medication, not every case of discomfort should be treated with highly addictive prescription meds nor should those drugs be trafficked via commercials that target a hypochondriacal nation of couch potatoes too lazy to put forth the time and effort to prevent disease. Instead, far too many Americans simply find a quick fix at their local pharmacy. These prescriptions lead to addiction and in the end death. Therefore, if I could take away any one invention from mankind it would be the crass commercialization of pharmaceuticals.

In 2015, the pharmaceutical industry spent over 27 billion dollars on advertising. The two greatest components of this effort were promotional advertising and free medication sampling, which the pharmaceuticals invested 15.5 and 5.7 billion dollars respectively (“Persuading the Prescribers”). Promotional advertising involves direct contact with health professionals, the most common being extravagant lunch conferences held for physicians and their staff. On the other hand, sampling involves distributing free sample of medications to physicians, who then have a choice of providing these samples to patients. As a result of these methods, the industry has seen revenue around $400 billion with 90% of physicians having a relationship with a drug company (Campbell 2007). Moreover, the prices of prescriptions continue to rise; a copay of a generic drug is $11.72, preferred brand drug is $36.37 and a specialty drug is $58.37 (Coleman and Geneson 2014). Although the profits are immense in the numbers demonstrated above, it is no surprise when pharmaceutical drug companies elevate their prices even more. For instance, recently Turing Pharmaceuticals raised the price of their medication Daraprim from $13.50 to $750. Keep in mind, this medication is used for threatening parasitic infections, aids, and cancer with alternative options currently found to be inefficient (Pollack 2015). Another example of this practice involves cycloserine, a drug used to

In the modern age of technological and medical advancements such as organ transplants and robotic limbs, Americans have developed unrealistic expectations about prescription drugs. The false belief that the right pill in the right dosage can cure all has led to a national epidemic: over prescription. Since the 1970s, the average American’s expenditure on prescription drugs has doubled because not only are new treatments for almost every ailment now available, but they are also aggressively advertised on television, the internet, and social media. At the same time that the American population confronts health issues associated with rising age, obesity, and stress levels, prescription drugs promise a quick fix for everything from depression to acne to insomnia leading to a one pill fix all.

There are many direct to consumer advertising for prescription drugs. On television, magazines, radio etc, you see the most recent advertisements for prescription drugs. After some people see the advertisements they soon rush over to their doctor and their illness and life would be perfectly pain and stress free. Making the public conscious of options for treatment is not a bad thing. But these false advertisements are misleading consumers onto unnecessary treatment.

American citizens envision a society which all people have access to high quality and affordably priced prescription medications. For many consumers, access to prescription medications is out of their reach. There is no denying prescription medications importance; they are known for being associated with saving people’s lives, maintaining people’s health, and improving the lifestyles for consumers.

During this time the first DTC print advertisement for Merck an “antipneumococcal vaccine, Pneumovax(pneumococcal vaccine polyvalent) was printed in Reader’s Digest (Ventola).” That created a chain effect and shortly later “Boots Pharmaceuticals ran the first DTC broadcast advertisement, which promoted the lower price of its prescription brand of ibuprofen (Rufen), compared with Motrin (Ventola).” Today, the US pharmaceutical industry spends $3.1 billion on advertising prescription drugs directly to consumers.

Prescription drug prices are increasing and it is becoming much more difficult for people that rely on healthcare to purchase them. Branded prescription drugs, specialty prescription drugs, and even generic products like ibuprofen have been inflating in the last 7 years. There are a number of reasons to attribute to the said inflation over the last 7 years. Newly approved branded and specialty prescription drugs and the rising costs of existing branded and specialty prescription drugs.

Following the guidelines by policymakers and the CDC to limit prescription of opioid medications, there have been numerous instances that highlight the pharmaceutical industry’s role in propagating initiatives that are contrary to these guidelines hence thwarting the fight against opioid abuse (Bement et al., 2014). The opioid pharmaceutical market is worth about $ 10 billion in sales annually which explains why the pharmaceutical industry would be reluctant in joining the fight against opioid abuse. The pharmaceutical industry perceives the fight against opioid use as a setback. As a result, the industry is constantly looking for measures to earn more profits by aggressively expanding the market for more drugs that are related to opioid use such that the answer to opioid addiction is to use more pills. The pharmaceutical industry is aggressively manufacturing alternative drugs to treat the side-effects of opioid use like constipation. Historically, the pharmaceutical industry has been accused of providing misleading information concerning the addictive features of some opioid medications which further frustrates the initiatives to stop opioid abuse since the addiction levels will be high for

Annually, the US spends $300 billion dollars on pharmaceutical drugs. This is due to the over-diagnosing of certain conditions. Everyday, Americans are exposed to an enormous amount of advertisements for medications of all kinds. For example, 1 in 10 Americans are taking

Millions of Americans are diagnosed with gastrointestinal disorders every year. Many can be controlled with lifestyle changes and medication. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is one of these gastrointestinal disorders that can be controlled with medication. Looking at pharmaceutical advertising, this paper will focus on two different internet gastrointestinal medication advertisements, one that is FDA approved and one that is not. Both were found on the internet that targets the general population with frequent heartburn symptoms. Each advertisement will be critiqued individually. This paper will also describe the pathophysiology of this GI disorder and the ways medication can alter this pathophysiology. Finally, these two commercials will be compared and contrasted, including the stated use of medication, patient safety issues, and analysis of that company’s claim of its benefits.

We in America tend to take medications for almost any problem we have, from headaches to gastrointestinal pain, to more serious chronic disorders such as depression and attention deficit disorder. While many of the uses of such medications may be necessary and legitimate, many are not, and due to this fact, many people become dependent on medications, mentally, and or physically. This problem is not simply the fault of the individual; in fact, the blame can also be placed upon the medical community, and the pharmaceutical companies who produce the drugs. How often can one turn on the television to see advertisements for Claritin, Aspirin, Pepto-Bismol, or even Zoloft or Ritalin? The pharmaceutical industry is motivated by monetary

Cigna Healthspring is a Medicare Advantage healthcare organization that is working to streamline healthcare services for its consumers. They have recently launch various advertisements focusing on preventative care in an attempt to get consumers to see their doctors more on a regular basis and not just when something is wrong. The advertisement above is one of many that feature some popular actors that play doctors on television shows. Although there is a bit of comedy in the advertisement, it captures the attention of the consumer so that they understand the underline message which is to get the annual checkup. This advertisement can be viewed on television, the company’s Facebook page, and their webpage. The purpose for this is to get

Ads for pharmaceutical drugs are everywhere. They are in magazines, on television and radio, on billboards, and on the little bags that you get from the pharmacist. These days it is difficult to get away from all the drug advertising. All these ads are for products that require a doctor's prescription. The goal of advertising is to increase profits. By advertising so heavily for drugs that the majority of the population does not need, pharmaceutical companies attempt to create as large a consumer base as they can. In advertising directly to the consumer, the drug companies accomplish two objectives. First, they get information directly to the consumer. Second, they promote the product and