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12-09-2002, 11:05 AM
Dec. 8 — Some pharmaceutical companies are using misleading ads to market prescription drugs, a stinging report from the U.S. General Accounting Office has found.
The report shows that even after some companies have been cited for violations, they continue the practice.
Last year, pharmaceutical companies spent more than $2.7 billion on advertising aimed at consumers, and the report shows that it was money well spent since patients requested and received prescriptions based upon their viewing of a specific ad.
The government says that ads with deceptive images — such as an ad for the arthritis drug Celebrex that depicts an elderly woman rowing a boat and riding a scooter — often exaggerate the benefits patients can expect from a medication.
In sum, the government report indicated that since 1997, the Food and Drug Administration has issued 88 letters to drug companies complaining of advertising violations.
"The violations have to do with companies overstating the benefits of their drugs, failing to adequately tell people about the risks and not balancing the good news with the bad news about the drug," said Dr. Sidney Wolfe of Public Citizen Health Research.
Repeat Offenders
Some companies are repeat offenders. In 1999 and 2000, the FDA wrote four letters to the GlaxoSmith Kline pharmaceutical company complaining about ads for its allergy drug Flonase.
The FDA said Flonase commercials made unsubstantiated claims that the drug could treat post-nasal drip.
The administration also filed complaints with Pfizer about its Lipitor ads because they falsely suggested the drug was "safer" than other cholesterol-lowering medications.
In response, Pfizer said it "immediately withdrew the ad and made the minor revisions necessary to meet the FDA's concerns."
"The FDA doesn't have the power to punish the company," said Dr. Arnold Relman of the Harvard Medical School. "All it can do is require cessation of that particular ad. Companies can then run another ad."
The ads in questions are often only scheduled to run for a month or two. By the time the FDA sends a violation notice, the pharmaceutical company may have already pulled the ad — after millions of Americans have seen it.
The result, some doctors say, is that some patients may be requesting drugs they do not need and drugs that may even do them harm.
article found >>here<< (http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/wnt/DailyNews/misleading_drug_ads021208.html?partner=earthlink)
The report shows that even after some companies have been cited for violations, they continue the practice.
Last year, pharmaceutical companies spent more than $2.7 billion on advertising aimed at consumers, and the report shows that it was money well spent since patients requested and received prescriptions based upon their viewing of a specific ad.
The government says that ads with deceptive images — such as an ad for the arthritis drug Celebrex that depicts an elderly woman rowing a boat and riding a scooter — often exaggerate the benefits patients can expect from a medication.
In sum, the government report indicated that since 1997, the Food and Drug Administration has issued 88 letters to drug companies complaining of advertising violations.
"The violations have to do with companies overstating the benefits of their drugs, failing to adequately tell people about the risks and not balancing the good news with the bad news about the drug," said Dr. Sidney Wolfe of Public Citizen Health Research.
Repeat Offenders
Some companies are repeat offenders. In 1999 and 2000, the FDA wrote four letters to the GlaxoSmith Kline pharmaceutical company complaining about ads for its allergy drug Flonase.
The FDA said Flonase commercials made unsubstantiated claims that the drug could treat post-nasal drip.
The administration also filed complaints with Pfizer about its Lipitor ads because they falsely suggested the drug was "safer" than other cholesterol-lowering medications.
In response, Pfizer said it "immediately withdrew the ad and made the minor revisions necessary to meet the FDA's concerns."
"The FDA doesn't have the power to punish the company," said Dr. Arnold Relman of the Harvard Medical School. "All it can do is require cessation of that particular ad. Companies can then run another ad."
The ads in questions are often only scheduled to run for a month or two. By the time the FDA sends a violation notice, the pharmaceutical company may have already pulled the ad — after millions of Americans have seen it.
The result, some doctors say, is that some patients may be requesting drugs they do not need and drugs that may even do them harm.
article found >>here<< (http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/wnt/DailyNews/misleading_drug_ads021208.html?partner=earthlink)