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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

#161

Post by jessriedel »

phren0logy wrote: post #143
jessriedel wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This logic applies to all consumer products. The best way to tell which car is safer is to read the original cash-test reports. Furthermore, if you make a mistake in choosing your car, there is some chance you'll die as a result. Should we ban car commercial? Even car commercials that merely report (as they usually do) summaries of the crash-test reports ("best is class safety!", "4 stars from the car insurance safet…

Cars are not only available by prescription.

So? You've identified a difference between cars and drugs, but it's not one that prevents your argument from applying to cars.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#162

Post by tedks »

enraged_camel wrote: post #155
Igglyboo wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I really don't think it would, alcohol is pretty heavily used in the USA and it's a pretty dangerous substance. There are definitely more dangerous drugs than alcohol but legalization of all drugs isn't going to destroy society.

Are you not aware that 88,000 people die from alcohol-related causes every year in the US and that alcohol is the third leading preventable cause of death? http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-con...

Do you support banning alcohol?

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#164

Post by Alex3917 »

wpietri wrote: post #75
Alex3917 wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I've never understood the logic behind prescription drug ads. The first rule of sales is to pitch the decision maker. "Surveys conducted by FDA and private organizations consistently show that DTC advertisements have an impact on whether consumers request and receive a specific brand-name prescription from their physician. [...] In several of these surveys, consumers were asked whether they had seen an advertisemen…

> The data doesn't care whether or not you see the logic behind it. This is true only if corporate executives are amoral automatons running hill-climbing algorithms. Rather than, say, citizens who use logic to make responsible decisions not just for their short-term profits but for the long-term good of their community.

> Rather than, say, citizens who use logic to make responsible decisions not just for their short-term profits but for the long-term good of their community.

You say this as if there's no relevant data available. But again, if you can Google the actual answer, your 'opinion' doesn't matter.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#165

Post by hammock »

nsxwolf wrote: post #93

These ads are one of the main reasons I became a cord cutter. I'm very happy they have not yet followed me onto any of the streaming services I use. They are the creepiest thing ever on television. The actors sit around dinner tables with family members speaking unnatural, FDA manipulated dialog ("Oh, I'm doing great, I've been taking Pradaxa for my afib, not caused by a heart valve problem!") Then you get the unendi…

The irony of wanting to ban Rx drug ads because they are creepy, is that it was regulations that made them creepy to begin with. (You seem aware of this already)

There is an argument to be made for consumer advertising for a drug like Viagra. Without awareness that an effective treatment exists, patients with ED or another embarrassing condition are not likely to bring it up with their doctor on their own, thus resulting in unnecessary suffering.

Another argument is that for various reasons some patients are unlikely to seek a second opinion, even when one is warranted. Consumer advertising is a way to present alternative treatment options to a patient whose doctor will not.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#166

Post by woodman »

phren0logy wrote: post #143
jessriedel wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This logic applies to all consumer products. The best way to tell which car is safer is to read the original cash-test reports. Furthermore, if you make a mistake in choosing your car, there is some chance you'll die as a result. Should we ban car commercial? Even car commercials that merely report (as they usually do) summaries of the crash-test reports ("best is class safety!", "4 stars from the car insurance safet…

Cars are not only available by prescription.

Vehicles are though, by way of DOT standards, various state regulations and licences... Wanna drive on the highway? That better be a vehicle perscribed for such activity.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#167

Post by jessriedel »

jerf wrote: post #157
jessriedel wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This logic applies to all consumer products. The best way to tell which car is safer is to read the original cash-test reports. Furthermore, if you make a mistake in choosing your car, there is some chance you'll die as a result. Should we ban car commercial? Even car commercials that merely report (as they usually do) summaries of the crash-test reports ("best is class safety!", "4 stars from the car insurance safet…

Cars are already heavily regulated. The minimum-legal car may not be comfortable and may not be pretty, but it'll be pretty darned safe and be decently efficient (considering the amount of material it is hauling around to be that safe). You can't advertise a death trap because it's already illegal to sell one. It's a poor comparison to the medical world where you can not help but do dangerous things to solve even mor…

You are vastly more likely to die in a car crash than from a non-abused prescription drug. Furthermore, small cars are significantly more deadly than large ones and trucks. Car companies obscure this by comparing cars to ones "in their class", thereby misleading the consumer into thinking that their high-scoring small car is about as safe as it gets.

(I am putting aside opiate abuse, since illegal use is a different thing and opiates aren't advertised anyway. But this wouldn't much hurt my argument, since the deaths from cars are very comparable to opiate abuse, so one still can't argue that drugs are more dangerous than cars.)

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#168

Post by dheera »

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 unfortunate truth is that a huge number of doctors are downright incompetent, and the healthcare system only allows you to see a limited selection of doctors. So until the system fixes itself, the onus is still on the patient to try to treat themselves.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#169

Post by bcoates »

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.

Good? They're at least getting informed consent and an opportunity to be diverted towards harm reduction. Ideally if a patient stubbornly demanded a particular drug they'd be warned in graphic detail of why that was a bad idea, asked to sign a "Prescription AMA" form, and that'd be the end of it. If nothing else it would keep them in the system and out of the grasp of hucksters and literal druglords.

The guys in the park selling opiates at unspecified dosage and purity are available 24/7 and don't even ask questions.

Re: Doctors want ban on prescription drug, device advertisements

#170

Post by jacquesm »

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…

It's the same principle at work when advertisers educate young children about how to nag more effectively.

Patients will go to their doctor and ask about a specific medicine and too many doctors will give in to this pressure if they feel that the medicine will not outright harm the patient. Patient happy, doctor can move on to someone who deserves his/her care more.

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