These are the drugs that should be on your mind...

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

They're either selling you ones that you don't need or charging you too much for the ones you do.

Anyone have an idea on how many hundreds of millions of dollars they spend on advertising something that your Doctor should determine if you need or not?

Think it might have something to do with the high prices?

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. We gots ourselves a winner folks

My sister works for the pharma industry. She says they will never admit it but the cost of drugs has definitely gone up as these commercials have taken over our airwaves. She is repulsed by these ads and tells me that most of the people she works with also disapprove of them.

[CAG]

2. 18 billion

or some gawd-awful figure like that (I don't have it right in front of me)

[azurnoir]

3. Most health insurance companies

or at least the ones that pay for part of a prescription also have formula ry lists. That is anytime you get a prescription for something there is a list of drugs that are acceptable to that company.
ie: if you have a problem sleeping there are one or two drugs ahead of Ambien* on most of these lists the reason is the other drugs are cheaper and the older ones may have a generic form. The insurance won't cover Ambien* unless you have tried the others and they don't work. Which iswhy they are advertised on TV, the patient asks for a drug by name getsthe script and doesn't know the insurance won't pay until they're at the pharmacy then somewill choose to pay out of pocket, although most pharmacies will call the Dr. and get something else.


* I use Ambien as an example because it is advertised on TV, Celebrex would be another, most of the time the patient will be told to use ibuprofen instead of Celebrex.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

4. Since there is little chance of Ambien going OTC, they are still in

the "branding" phase.

Valium was pitched like hell in the 70's by the salespeople and is still widely prescribed as far as I know.

[azurnoir]

8. Ambien has been around for about 6 years

but there are other drugs that do the same thing that are cheaper Restoril would be one. It's not about going OTC it's about what kind of deals insurance companies get with pharmaceutical companies.
BTW Valium scripts aren't as common as they once were, I was in jr. high and high school in the 70's I remember EVERYONES mom had valium around the house(which may well be how abuse started), but now even if you get a script for Valium most Dr's will write a script for diazapam(?) one is the brand name the other is the drugs actual name.

[panader0]

5. When I was a kid a long time ago

the only drug ad I remember on TV was Alka-Seltzer (plop plop fizz fizz oh what a relief it is) Now the drug ads have lists of the side effects that sound way worse than whatever your problem is. I believe I'll stick to herb.

[liberaltrucker]

7. I agree in principal

However, if not for Effexor(over-priced by Wyeth), I'd have gone off the deep end years ago.
Thank *whoever* LTwife has excellent insurance.

[NanceGreggs]

6. And remember, folks ...

"Ask your doctor if totally useless drugs are right for you!"

[sakabatou]

9. I never heard a commercial for my meds

but they're $1 per pill.

[azurnoir]

10. It depends

on what the med is and if there a generic and most of all on your insurance example mine has a co-pay of $10 a month for a generic and $35 a month for brand name quite a difference, if there is no generic then the co-pay is $25-$30 a month. Most Drs are quite co-operative on these issues.