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Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

arstechnica.com

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Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#21

Post by jtuente »

paviva wrote: post #5
masterleep wrote: post #2

What rubbish! Let speech be free, and let people make up their own minds about things.

I'm a doctor, and very into free speech, but the problem here is that in healthcare, patients' choices are paid with other people money.

As a healthy, single, white male who hasn't had a threatening reason to visit a doctor, This. I probably wouldn't have health insurance right now if it weren't for the Affordable Care Act (even though my employer pays most of it). Sure that could bite me in the ass if something were to happen to me, but I'm comfortable with that risk and have family to help me out. There's no good reason for me to "outsource" my healthcare options.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#22

Post by rtl49 »

masterleep wrote: post #2

What rubbish! Let speech be free, and let people make up their own minds about things.

It's a nice sentiment, and I wish we could live in such a world. Unfortunately, this approach opens up the field for some rather obscene exploitation of prevalent biases of reasoning that even educated people are susceptible to.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#23

Post by paxtonab »

One of the arguments I've commonly heard against a ban like this is that pharmaceutical companies need to market their products because of the cost developing new drugs. However, this has turned into a strategy of expanding the medical uses of already approved drugs and then marketing the "new uses".

Tylenol is the perfect example of this. Everyone "knows" that it reduces the risk of heart attacks, because of the marketing campaigns. But what most people don't know is how little of an impact Tylenol actually makes.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#24

Post by manachar »

joshuaheard wrote: post #10

I've never understood the logic behind prescription drug ads. The first rule of sales is to pitch the decision maker. You can't buy prescription drugs without a doctor's authorization, so basically the ads are asking people to go beg their doctors for medicine they may, or may not, need. The doctor, in turn, may give in to the patient's emotional pleas, since they are, in effect, in a customer service business. This…

In the US, the consumer drives a lot of the healthcare decisions.

This has positives, as consumers can be more active participants in their health, but can also lead to people shopping for doctors who will prescribe the drugs that they want based on flimsy research and marketing.

Additionally, this is a great backdoor way for consumers to be "educated" about conditions they didn't know they had. Consumers then would go to their doctor to talk about these things.

These advertisements are extremely effective at getting patients going to doctors about conditions they hadn't necessarily discussed with the doctor before.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#26

Post by mindcrime »

joshuaheard wrote: post #10

I've never understood the logic behind prescription drug ads. The first rule of sales is to pitch the decision maker. You can't buy prescription drugs without a doctor's authorization, so basically the ads are asking people to go beg their doctors for medicine they may, or may not, need. The doctor, in turn, may give in to the patient's emotional pleas, since they are, in effect, in a customer service business. This…

You can't buy prescription drugs without a doctor's authorization, so basically the ads are asking people to go beg their doctors for medicine they may, or may not, need.

FWIW, I asked my GP about this when I went in for a physical recently. He said he really doesn't get patients coming in asking for specific drugs in response to TV ads, and said he doesn't think it is an issue. Of course that's just one anecdote, but it shows that doctors are hardly in unanimous agreement on this.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#27

Post by mindcrime »

paxtonab wrote: post #23

One of the arguments I've commonly heard against a ban like this is that pharmaceutical companies need to market their products because of the cost developing new drugs. However, this has turned into a strategy of expanding the medical uses of already approved drugs and then marketing the "new uses". Tylenol is the perfect example of this. Everyone "knows" that it reduces the risk of heart attacks, because of the mar…

Tylenol is the perfect example of this. Everyone "knows" that it reduces the risk of heart attacks, because of the marketing campaigns.

I've never heard a soul mention Tylenol in connection with decreased heart attack risk. Are you sure you aren't thinking about aspirin?

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#28

Post by Aloisius »

joshuaheard wrote: post #10

I've never understood the logic behind prescription drug ads. The first rule of sales is to pitch the decision maker. You can't buy prescription drugs without a doctor's authorization, so basically the ads are asking people to go beg their doctors for medicine they may, or may not, need. The doctor, in turn, may give in to the patient's emotional pleas, since they are, in effect, in a customer service business. This…

> The first rule of sales is to pitch the decision maker. You can't buy prescription drugs without a doctor's authorization, so basically the ads are asking people to go beg their doctors for medicine they may, or may not, need. The doctor, in turn, may give in to the patient's emotional pleas, since they are, in effect, in a customer service business. This would be an ethical violation.

I think most of these ads are targeted to people who are already taking a drug for a condition. They want people to ask their doctor to switch to their drug - something a doctor would have far less ethical issues with.

The problem of course is people switch away from a drug that has worked for 40 years to something new because of advertising and their insurance (and in turn, all of us) ends up picking up the cost for something that may have no benefit whatsoever to the patient.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#29

Post by rtl49 »

bunnymancer wrote: post #19
rtl49 wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you ever sought a particular prescription from a doctor? Many general practitioners in the United States are glorified drug dealers. You will probably get whatever you ask for if you can afford the copay.

Disturbingly easy to get class II drugs without any proof of need.

I have no direct experience seeking a prescription, but I do know a doctor who has repeatedly complained to me about patients coming to him with the expectation of receiving a particular drug. He's considered giving up his DEA license to reduce this problem.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#30

Post by ksherlock »

tosseraccount wrote: post #11

Can't a free market sort out the problems with drug use?

As it is, there are too many distortions. You don't pay for your drugs, your insurance company does. You don't even pay for your insurance, your employer does. So once a year, maybe, you grumble that your insurance premiums (the part you pay, at least) are going up, then the next day ask your doctor about Scrotium.
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