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Drugs You Don't Need for Disorders You Don't Have
Article

Drugs You Don't Need for Disorders You Don't Have

Inside the Pharmaceutical Industry's Campaign to Put Us All to Sleep


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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Innovative

Recommendation

Do drug advertisements really help American consumers? Do they make people more aware of newer, better treatment options? Or are these ads just keeping pharmaceutical companies profitable as true innovation diminishes? Senior national correspondent for The Huffington Post, Jonathan Cohn, successfully addresses these questions through expert analysis of the effect of drug ads upon consumer behaviors and exploration of possible remedies to misleading drug marketing practices. getAbstract recommends Cohn’s findings to everyone interested in consumer advocacy and health care trends.

Take-Aways

  • The United States is one of the only nations in the world that allows drug manufactures to market prescription medications directly to consumers.
  • Drug ads have helped increase Americans’ spending on pharmaceuticals and enable expensive, brand-name drugs to outsell their generic counterparts.
  • While the US Food and Drug Administration regulates drug ads, these regulations are lax enough that companies can mislead consumers as to their drugs’ effectiveness and safety.

About the Author

Jonathan Cohn is a senior national correspondent for The Huffington Post. He is also the author of Sick: The Untold Story of America’s Health Care Crisis – and the People Who Pay the Price.