Healthy Skepticism Library item: 5721

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Journal Article

Beales JH.
Economic analysis and the regulation of pharmaceutical advertising
Seaton Hall Law Review 1994; 24:1370-1398

Abstract:

Regulatory intervention in markets is often justified because information is imperfect. Sound regulatory policies can prevent consumers from making inferior choices and enhance consumer welfare. However, consumers also make inferior choices is they choose without adequate knowledge of the benefits of particular products. An important mechanism for disseminating information in a market economy is advertising. Regulatory restrictions on advertising can sacrifice important benefits to consumers. Requirements for too much information can effectively prohibit advertising in certain media and prohibitions on truthful claims mean that consumer must make choices in relative ignorance. Prescription drug advertising regulations suffer from both problems. The rules limiting advertising claims about product uses to those that the Food and Drug Administration has already approved effectively prohibit trughtful claims. Particularly when no alternative therapies have been approved, the requirement does not even serve to reduce the use of ineffective medicines. Extending the current policy to nontraditional forms of promotion such as scientific meetings and symposia offers very limited additional benefits. It does so, however, at the considerable risk of damaging the process of developing and disseminating scientific knowledge.

Keywords:
*analysis/United States/Food and Drug Administration/FDA/regulation of promotion/DTCA/direct-to-consumer advertising/ unlabeled indication/ conferences/ consumer behaviour & knowledge/ value of promotion/ fair balance(brief summary)/quality of information/ commercial free speech/corporate funding/ATTITUDES REGARDING PROMOTION: REGULATORS AND GOVERNMENT/EVALUATION OF PROMOTION: DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER ADVERTISING/INFLUENCE OF PROMOTION: PRESCRIBING, DRUG USE/PROMOTIONAL TECHNIQUES: UNLABELED INDICATIONS/REGULATION, CODES, GUIDELINES: DIRECT GOVERNMENT REGULATION