The folks at Commercial Alert have launched a digital advocacy function on their site to drive people to tell the FDA to stop pharmaceutical ads. Stop Drug Ads has a real bone to pick with the industry:
"Pharmaceutical companies exist to make a profit. That is their duty under the law – to yield a maximum return for their shareholders. In order to do that they have to sell drugs. The more drugs they sell, the better their shareholders will do. Every piece of information that the company sends out must be geared to this end.
This is why pharmaceutical companies are not a good source of information about their own prescription medicines. Their financial interests directly conflict with any intention to provide unbiased information about their products. Because of their financial conflicts-of-interest, pharmaceutical companies are perhaps the least trustworthy sources for information about their own drugs. By their very nature, drug companies hype the benefits – or alleged benefits – of their drugs and downplay the negatives. They encourage people to see their problems as diseases that require medication. The result is a public that is increasingly pathologized and drugged."
They are equally ticked off at the advertising agencies:
"Ad agencies exist to sell products. That is their function, and reason for being. An ad agency that handles a drug company account is hired to help that company sell more drugs and boost profits. But a persuasive pitch for the severity of a drug’s side effects will not sell more drugs. This conflict-of-interest makes advertising agencies institutionally incapable of fairly presenting the risks and benefits of their clients’ drugs. Corporations do not pay millions of dollars to these agencies to sell fewer products, whether of drugs or anything else."
Who is Commercial Alert? A broad child/family focused advocacy group spearheaded by Gary Ruskin. Their advisors include teachers, doctors, Raffi (yes, that Raffi) nand Ralph Nader.
Will pharma embrace the BP strategy of acknowledging the paradox of their business (drugs save lives, the "pure" business ethic of pursuing short-term profit threatens health and safety). Or will they hide like - eek - tobacco until it's too late? Plenty of businesses exist within a paradox. Those that openly discuss it and genuinely search for solutions tend to do better in the publics' eye.
Comments