Contreras 1

Bianca Contreras
Professor Cynthia Hamlett
ENGL 102
October 14, 2015
Mislead about Potentially Dying: Prescription Drug Ads
According to an Apr. 2013 survey, 68% of doctors agree that prescription drugs are
marketed before safety profiles can be known (Meyer). These ads use manipulation and distract
the viewer from the potential harms of the medication. For example, the ads for Humira, a drug
to help cure psoriasis, uses propaganda to sell its product. Although they do mention all the
possible side effects, including death, they do so while a woman in the background looks happy
and so confident that it almost makes people ignore what they are saying. Prescription ads
promote drugs before long-term safety information is known. Although prescription ads inform
people about possible treatment, it ultimately can be harmful to the consumers health because
the effects are not being properly stated. Prescription ads do not need approval from the FDA,
and they use propaganda such as plain-folks appeal to sell their product. Therefore it is so easy to
lure people in.
Prescription ads do not necessarily need to be approved by the FDA,
Food and Drug Administration. In most cases, federal law does not allow the
FDA to require that drug companies submit ads for approval before the ads
are used. Many drug companies voluntarily seek advice from us before they
release TV ads. (Prescription Drug Advertising). The FDA does not even see
the prescription drug ads until the same time the public sees them. The fact
that people can put anything on TV about drugs is pretty scary, and the fact
that it does not have to be approved by the FDA, people that are supposed to
protect our heath, makes it even scarier.

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There have been many drugs that have caused harm and among them
is Vioxx. Vioxx was advertised, requested by patients, and prescribed from
1999 to 2004 for arthritis and pain relief before being withdrawn from the
market for causing strokes and heart attacks (Ventola). Vioxx was listed as
the primary suspected cause of death in 4,540 mortalities from Jan. 1, 1999
to June 30, 2005. This drug was advertised for six years without the
intervention of the FDA. Many prescription drug ads could potently be the
next Vioxx. Federal law does not ban drug companies from advertising any
kind of prescription drugs, even ones that can cause severe injury, addiction,
or withdrawal effects. However, companies cannot use reminder ads for
drugs with certain serious risks (drugs with "boxed warnings") (Prescription
Drug Advertising). Reminder ads give the drug's name but not the drug's
use. The assumption behind reminder ads is that the people know what the
drug is for and does not need to be told. That does not make everything
better, because they are still advertising something that could possibly harm
someone. For example, cigarettes have harmful side effects and can be
addictive just like prescription drugs. If cigarettes cannot be advertised,
prescription drug ads should not be allowed to either.
A kind of propaganda that prescription ads do is plain-folks appeal. Plain folks is the
device by which a speaker tries to win our confidence and support by appearing to be a person
like ourselves (Cross). Lets go back to the ad about the drug Humira. They have a woman who
acts so insecure and embarrassed about her psoriasis, but after taking the drug she walks around
with confidence and a smile on her face. This ad is using plain-folks appeal to attract all the

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people who are insecure about their skin because of their psoriasis. Of course people want to feel
confident in their own skin, but trying to distract people about the serious side effects that
include serious infections that can cause death and even cancer is unethical. These prescription
drug ads appeal to human natures want of instant gratification and solution, which makes them
appealing to certain viewers. Therefore patients may find themselves requesting prescription
drugs based on advertisements rather than the effectiveness of the medication.
These ads want to make money so of course they are going to use propaganda in order to
get people to buy their product. Drug company propaganda techniques are extremely
sophisticated, leveraging advanced techniques to change the medical landscape. Its big business
for them US spending on prescription drugs jumped from $40 billion in 1990 to $234 billion
in 2008 but bad business for you (3 Drug Company Propaganda Techniques). These ads do
not care about the peoples heath they just want money because it is nothing but a business to
them. The ads have a strong propaganda angle happy, healthy people whove found that the
one thing theyve needed in life actually came in the form of a pill. This pill. The pill you need to
ask your doctor about at your next appointment (3 Drug Company Propaganda Techniques).
Prescription drug ads find a way to attract people, especially the people that suffer from the
diseases that the pill claims to cure. It is only natural for people to want to look and feel their
best and these ads are taking advantage of that.
Some of the opposing views are that prescription drug ads inform patients about
diseases/medical conditions and possible treatments. An Apr. 2013 FDA survey found that 48%
of doctors agree that DTC ads inform, educate, and empower patients (Tyler). However, if
someone is concerned about their health they should visit their doctor and get professional advice
instead of trusting a drug advertisement. Also, According to an Apr. 2013 survey, 68% of
doctors agree that prescription drugs are marketed before safety profiles can be known (Meyer).

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More doctors believe that these ads are just trying to sell people the product and not to inform
people about the product. So their goal is not to inform people, but to sell to the people.
Another opponent is that diseases and medical conditions are more likely to be treated
when consumers see DTC prescription drug ads. Meyer, a healthcare marketing expert, said:
Prescription drug ads indeed provide information about certain drugs; however, the
credibility of the information provided is questionable. These ads tend to misinform
patients, and make the drug seem suitable for the audience, even though it may not be
suited for a specific viewer. 74% of surveyed physicians thought these ads were
completely misleading patients.
Drug ads inform consumers about available medications and give important information about
the product, yet these drug ads can be misleading. Also people see the ads as a way to give
people possible diseases they might have, therefore believe they need the medication, but that
should be up to a medical professional to diagnose you and treat you. For example, Procrit is a
drug used to counteract anemia and can be used to help chemotherapy patients with fatigue
(Ventola). Prior to the ad campaign the drug was rarely prescribed because chemotherapy
patients were not reporting fatigue caused by the chemotherapy to their doctors. Yet after seeing
the ad patients started to report fatigue (Ventola). Prescription drug ads make people paranoid
about their health and provide them with a solution they do not need.
By informing the people about possible diseases/medical conditions and possible
treatments they are also informing people that normal attributes are not so normal. For
example, DTC prescription drug ads tell consumers that normal attributes, such as thinner
eyelashes, or normal aging processes, such as lower testosterone levels and wrinkles, are medical
conditions that need to be remedied with drugs (Kornfield). These ads create the idea that
normal conditions are "bad," resulting in the stigmatization of non-problematic conditions
(Kornfield). When these ads start putting things in peoples head, about their health, of course

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they are going to get the medication because everyone wants to be healthy. The doctor's office
was the primary vehicle through which the public learned about new types of drugs. Since then
the trend of self-diagnosis has developed. This is leading to a spike in over-prescribed
medications. People will be less likely to take care of themselves if they believe that a
medication will reverse any damage that their bad health habits may cause (Kornfield). These ads
are making people more reliable on taking drugs to cure themselves when there can be other
alternatives to solve their problems. Also by making drug the priority cure it makes people more
addictive to these drugs. According to a study published in the Sep. 2013 issue of Journal of
General Internal Medicine, 60% of claims made in DTC prescription drug ads aired from 2008
to 2010 "left out important information, exaggerated information, provided opinions, or made
meaningless associations with lifestyles (Christensen). Most prescription drug ads spend more
time on benefits than negative side effects, which should be the other way around because in the
end that is what is going to be affecting the people the most.
Prescription drug ads can inform people about possible diseases/ medical conditions and
treatments. Yet they do so in a way this is misleading people. Therefore prescription ads could
ultimately harm the consumers health. They are using propaganda to sell a product that is
harmful and should be taken seriously instead of trying to paint a pretty picture and dance around
the truth. There have been many prescription drug ads that have caused death and yet they still
have them. They are only out to get peoples money and dont really care about the harmful
effect that these drugs can cause. These days it is difficult to get away from all the drug
advertising. All these ads usually require a doctor's prescription, so might as well just have a
doctor tell people about the options people have instead of being manipulated by the ads. People
should trust their doctor, a medical professional, more than an ad shown on TV. These ads are
manipulating, money suckers, and most importantly deadly.

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Work Cited
Christensen, Annmarie. "TV Drug Ads: The Whole Truth?." Eurekaalert.org. American
Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 16 Sept. 2013. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
Cross, Donna W. Propaganda: How Not to Be Bamboozled. Language Awareness. Ed 11. Paul
Eschholz, Alfred Rosa, Virginia Clark. Boston: Bedford/ST. Martins, 2013. 209-219. Print.
"3 Drug Company Propaganda Techniques to BEWARE Of Most." Losethebackpain. N.p., 22
Feb. 2012. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
Kornfield, Rachel. "The Rise of TV Advertising for Prescription Cosmetic
Pharmaceuticals." Healthmediacollaboratory.org. Health Media Collaboratory Institute for
Health Research & Policy University of Illinois at Chicago, 20 Aug. 2013. Web. 20 Sept.
2015.
Meyer, Richard. "Majority of Physicians Believe DTC Ads Should Be Cut Back." World of DTC
Marketing.com. N.p., 30 Apr. 2013. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
"Prescription Drug Advertising: Questions and Answers." FDA U.S. Food and Drug
Administration. N.p., 19 June 2015. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.

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Tyler, Taylor. "Direct-to-Consumer Drug Ads Should Be Scaled Back, Doctors Say." IVNus.
N.p., 03 June 2013. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
Ventola, Lee C. "Direct-to-Consumer Pharmaceutical Advertising: Therapeutic or
Toxic?" Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. National Center for Biotechnology Information, Oct. 2011. Web.
20 Sept. 2015.