Loreto M. Macadangdang Angel V.

Lagda

BSN 3B English 23 Fri : 5:50p 8:50p

Should the government regulate prescription drugs in TV ads?

I.

Introduction a. Prescription drugs are licensed and controlled legislation to have a medical prescription before it can be bought to consumers b. Although the pharmaceutical companies and agencies properly advertise the prescription drugs with information, it should be regulated because drug advertising is not educational, it omits some information that is crucial about the purpose and as well as the side effects and its contraindication which can be a foreseeable crisis for human beings.

II.

Background a. In 1927, the pharmaceutical companies formed a separate law enforcing the agencies to regulate the advertising of OTC drugs b. The congress delayed the consumer advertising due to the side effects that is being reviewed further for doctors in the US. c. Prescription drugs such as pain relievers, CNS depressants and stimulants are some common drugs that can be abused d. Prescription drugs in TV ads may lead to misinterpretation towards the drug which may give unnecessary fears to health consumers;

e. Causes pressure against health care professionals to prescribe medicines and may increase the cost of health care.

i. Major Argument 1: Advertising can be misinterpreted by consumer due to its unexpected side effects 1. Direct to consumer prescription drug advertisements cause patients to want and request medications that might be unnecessary or even harmful, thus leading to an overmedicated and unhealthy society. 2. It may have its corresponding effects, but consumers may not know its long term side effects which would lead into complications in the future. 3. Knowing the concepts in TV ads about such drugs can be educational but when tried it may lead to complications and illness on the long run.

Analysis: Being able to know the drug doesnt mean that it has the cure effect but through ways that can be abusive, drugs has their own side effects and many consequences may occur in the future.

ii. Major Argument 2: Pharmaceutical drugs are expensive 1. The money spent on advertising prescription drugs is passed on to consumers by raising the price of those drugs.

2. Not all consumers can afford Drugs that are prescribed by the doctors so they prefer OTC drugs. 3. Prescription drugs in ads cost a lot, so as the price increases the drug companies takes an advantage by selling it at a higher price. Analysis: It is true that if the price of advertising and other kind of entertaining the drug has been introduce, the price of the drug would be raised because of the economic investments that is put through the making and the distribution.

iii. Major Argument 3: Prescription drug abuse 1. Some consumers may have the tendency to have an overdose of the drug when not endorsed properly. 2. As the patient consumes on the overdose of the drug, the tolerance of the patient will be high. 3. Consumers that have high tolerance of drugs would need I higher dose of drugs which would lead to drug overdosing that can lead to drug abuse. Analysis: Some people are not that knowledgeable about taking the drug. So they tend to take more than what is to be taken, so they overdose themselves and the therapeutic action of the drug will not take effect because of drug tolerance.

iv. CON Argument 1: It can be a good educational service among consumers. 1. Advertising can be a turning point of helping consumers on the types of drugs that can be use for such illness. 2. Whether the drugs has side effects, health care

professionals will have an idea of the drug that is being advertised 3. Prescription drug consumers have access to physicians, pharmacists, product packaging, internet websites, medical literature and more to educate them about prescription products.

Analysis: Acquiring knowledge about the drugs that the consumers are buying is a way to show them what and how Prescription drugs in TV ads can play a role of a teacher

References: Should Prescription Drug Ads Be Reined In?, Publication: August 4, 2009 http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/04/should-prescription-drug-ads-be-reined-in/

Regulatin TV commercials for Prescription Drugs Aug 12,2009, Carroll Rrosclair http://carroll-trosclair.suite101.com/prescription-drug-commercials-stir-controversy-a138361

A Deacade of Direct-to-Consumer Advertising o f Prescription Drugs Julie M. Donohue, Ph.D., Marisa Cevasco, B.A. and Meredith B. Rosenthal, Ph.D. Publication: August 16, 2007 http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa070502

A Decade of Controversy: Balancing Policy With Evidence in the Regulaiton of Prescription Drug Advertising Dominick L.Frosch, PhD, David Grande, MD, MPA, Derjung M. Tarn, MD, PhD, and Richard L. Dravitz, MD, MSPH Publication: April 11, 2009 http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2008.153767

A History of Drug Ads On TV Ed Zimney, MD

Publication: August 24, 2006 http://www.everydayhealth.com/blog/zimney-health-and-medical-news-you-can-use/a-historyof-drug-ads-on-tv/

Drug Ads on TV A Briedf History Michael Wayne Publication: March 16, 2010 http://www.lowdensitylifestyle.com/drug-ads-on-tv-a-brief-history/

Harvard Gazette Archives More prescription drugs ads on T V Publication: February 21,2002 http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/2002/02.21/06-prescription.html

Prescription Drug TV Ads Publication: February 11 2012 http://www.vaughns-1-pagers.com/medicine/prescription-drug-tv-ads.htm

Creating Demand for Prescription Drugs: A content Analysis of Television Direct-to-Consumer Advertising Dominick L. Frosch, PhD, Patrick M. Krueger, PhD, Robert C. Hornik, PhD, Peter F. Cronholm, MD, MSCE, and Frances K. Barg, PhD Publication: December 21, 2005

http://www.annfammed.org/content/5/1/6.full

Prescription Drugs on TV: Making More Dollars than Sense Lyrial Zander http://lyrialzander.hubpages.com/hub/Prescription-Drugs-on-TV

InfoFacts: Prescription and Over-the-Counter Medications Publication: June 2009 http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/infofacts/prescription-over-counter-medications

Should the government regulate prescription drugs in TV ads?

Nowadays, many people are using prescription drugs depending on what illness they may have. These prescription medications are not merely plain drugs in the market. These drugs are licensed medicines regulated by legislation to require a medical prescription before it can be bought by consumer. This license is a need so that prescription drugs can be differentiated with those of over-the-counter drugs which can be bought without any prescription. Different OTC drugs have their own unique action. Consumers would depend on how this drug works or sometimes if they see it in TV ads.

The appeal and pharmaceutical companies on consumers would make an impact that would make consumers think and obtaining their drugs, how those companies would encourage consumers, on their appeal, if it would be a positive or negative appeal.

Patients, health care professionals and other pharmaceutical companies have their significant roles in the prevention of drug abuse and addiction to prescription medications. The patient should read all information provided by the pharmacist and through the help of health care professionals even when following up check-up. Some OTC drugs, such as cough and cold medications contain Dextromethorphan which has a good source of wellness when taken, but sometimes it can be abused and can lead to serious adverse health consequences. The common prescription drug abused are the Opiods which is prescribed to treat pain; CNS depressants which is used to treat anxiety and any sleep disorders and stimulant that is prescribed to treat narcolepsy and ADHD.

The pharmaceutical companies and agencies believe that, if done properly advertising can provide people with information about new prescription drugs as well as information about symptoms of treating illness and other conditions, however due to drug advertising is not educational because feature and imagery and it omits some information that is crucial about the purpose of the drug as well as the side effects and its contraindications.

As consumers, we need to be aware of the ulterior motives present in the advertising world. We also need to be aware of the tricks of the trade. How do they manipulate the way we think about a product? However, responsibility also lies with the big shots in television and advertising. They are the windows to information for the entire world. They know all about how to use their power and they should be using it for good.

Advertising prescribed drugs can help increase drug sales but in 1927 the drug industry formed separate law enforcement agency, the food and drug administration, which regulates the advertising of prescribed drugs. So in 1983 the organization of FDA requested a permit to hold on drug ads because of the study that is found in the market which was listed with side effects of the medicine that has been introduced.

So in 1985 the FDA suggested that the ads must also list down the possible side effects of the medication, so the so called reminder ads came to view and images of profound users where mention with their brand name but there were no conditions mentioned. I n 1997, advertisements are required to mention the side effects with limited details on the medications.

So the drugs with the largest advertising budgets are inevitably the best sellers. Every sales of the 50 drugs with the largest ad budgets has increased almost half of the retail spending on prescription drugs spending amount of $20.8 billion drugs between 1999 and 2000 (Korcok, M. 2002, p. 289)

In the article of U.S.A. today, which was published on August 8, 2009, regulating TV ads for OTC drugs, the congress decided in the coming months, if pharmaceutical companies will be able to continue the television commercials in promoting the OTC drugs in the way they had commercialized for the past generation. The decision of accepting it is extremely high for any pharmaceutical companies, network and other source of advertising, for consumers who lack information.

For the past few years, several pharmaceutical companies had accepted an agreement to delay consumer advertising, with the latest OTC drugs for the next 6 months so that they will use the time to review the drugs that is used and to inform the doctors on the promises and side effects of the latest drugs. (Becker, 2005, p442)

According to USA Today, ads are being spend on OTC drugs was second on the overview of autos in 2000 but the pharmaceutical companies had lowered their spending nearly 20% the previous year, which dropped from $5.4billion to $4.3 billion. Since FDA was approved in 1997, it was their first downfall for the company. (Theresa Howard, 2009)

Many controversies about taking prescription drugs, which are the over-the-counter drugs has flourished through peoples minds and yet to analyze the consequence about different consequence in lifes personal side-effects of the drugs. The quality of education that is intended for viewers, researchers, and other health organization, but can OTC advertising educate consumers in a way of their understanding? How can the TV ads be the center of medicine? Even when there is a doctor that has more experience and more educated when it comes to drugs that is being use and their counter measure.

So some of the messages has some dangerous outcome. Consumers impose the demand of these drugs to the limit and in turn sold massive quantities before anything that works out. Several drugs have already bees pulled even after market side effects arose. The common cases that was publicized was being the Merck Cox-2 inhibitor drug which is even called the Vioxx drug, which is prescribed for arthritis. It has cause major heart attack and strokes in many consumers and had Merck going on rampage over 11,500 law firms. (Simons,J. 2006, p. 28)

These are not the only example of cases but however, anti-depressants such as Paxil and Prozac has been even invreasing of risk of suicide in many children and teens. And even many drugs prescribed that was for attention has been found that it causes attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), like Ritalin and Adderal which are likely the cause of cardiac harm. (Levin, A. 2006 p.4). Another example with the side effects of dangerous drugs would be the sleeping pills Ambien, which causes many problems, was one of the major combination of drugs found in Actors which is Heath Ledhers system when he died of it. But he is still not the only people that

was affected by this incident of this drug, several consumers have been reported directly of binge eating, walking and even driving while asleep and even aware of the side effects. (Oh, H. 2006, p. 10)

However, critics say that commercials can lead to misinterpretation towards the drug/medicines, gives unnecessary fears of health in consumers. Pressures professional healthcare providers to prescribe a medicine that is not medically recommended and the cost of drugs that may increase are as well as the cost of health care. OTC drugs is a decision to make when being bought, so the educational information about prescription drugs criticize the critics to counter the importance to regulate the promotions to sell OTC products because of their number of resources and the accumulation and advertising.

Consumers must not just depend on buying prescription which they see in TV ads, they should also consider consulting first to the doctor before they can take the drug. They should also know the action of the drug and the possible side effects that the drug may cause to them. And so lastly, to the pharmaceutical companies, they also must not think only of their business but they should also consider the consumers well being.