Hi everyone,
The Trump administration is seeking to ban drug ads on television, and personally I think this is a great idea. How many times have you been sitting watching your favorite show or a sporting event only to have the breaks be filled with ads for drugs the purpose of which is entirely baffling? Big pharma is out of control.
Like Zyprexa, a drug marketed by Eli Lilly over 20 years ago. One ad campaign was "Viva Zyprexa" while another was called "Zyprexa Limitless." Instead of just going to doctors and encouraging them to provide it to patients whose symptoms indicate that they would benefit from it, execs launched these massive ad campaigns essentially marketing the drug to consumers off label. It was an anti-psychotic and they encouraged its use in dementia patients. They downplayed the side effects. They got sued, but drug ads are still on TV and just as weird as ever.
All those ads that show people loving life and then end with a hefty dose of side effects ranging from diarrhea to suicide have no business being shown to consumers and consumers have no business going into their doctors' offices saying "hey, is Hexaprin right for me?"
We are far too drugged as a society. We drug ourselves, we drug our kids, and while pharmaceuticals can be useful and even necessary, the industry is such a profit-driven behemoth that it's easy to see how they'd put their own stock prices above the interests of consumer health.
Trump signed a memorandum on Tuesday asking staff to revive a policy that would prevent big drug ads from being shown on TV. In 1997, there was a policy change that made it possible for pharmaceutical ads to be shown on TV, boosting both drug company and television network profits. RFK Jr is against the ads because he just wants us to exercise and eat right—God forbid.
The plan is to "remove the 1997 'Adequate Provision' Loophole, which has enabled pharmaceutical companies to withhold vital safety information in advertisements," be "aggressive in enforcement of [direct-to-consumer] violations;" and to "close digital loopholes by expanding regulatory oversight to encompass social media promotional activities." Personally, I'll be happy if I no longer see ads encouraging me to take drugs that might make me want to kill myself.