USA ADVERTISEMENTS
July 1st, 2005
BY MONICA DOBIE
THE AMERICAN Medical Association (AMA) has agreed to study whether consumer drug advertising leads to unnecessary prescriptions that could potentially harm patients and drives up health costs. Critics of drug advertising blame the campaigns for fuelling the use of Cox-2 painkillers, such as Vioxx, which was withdrawn because it was linked to serious cardiovascular problems. The move comes as pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb announced it would no longer advertise new drugs to consumers in the first year they are made available.
THE AMERICAN Medical Association (AMA) has agreed to study whether consumer drug advertising leads to unnecessary prescriptions that could potentially harm patients and drives up health costs. Critics of drug advertising blame the campaigns for fuelling the use of Cox-2 painkillers, such as Vioxx, which was withdrawn because it was linked to serious cardiovascular problems. The move comes as pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb announced it would no longer advertise new drugs to consumers in the first year they are made available.
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