Much of this growth has come in the past two years after the Food and Drug Administration gave greater leeway to promoting prescription drugs on television. My personal feeling is that the more knowledge the patient gets, the better it is. On the other hand, the advertising 'de-professionalizes' the profession to some degree. In addition to voting on the Illinois medical group's proposal, AMA delegates will vote on an amendment to the association's code of medical ethics, exhorting doctors to inform the FDA about distorted ads. Although physicians should not be biased against drugs that are advertised, physicians should resist commercially induced pressure to prescribe such drugs when not indicated.
Doctors say the pressure can be intense.
In the back of the doctor's mind, he's thinking if he doesn't give the patient this medicine, the patient will go elsewhere. Critics say ads can oversell benefits and underplay a drug's risks. Drug makers say the ads make patients more aware of ailments and encourage the patients to learn more from their doctors. He is president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the biggest drug industry trade group. Searle started Celebrex ads on TV last month.