Other Approaches for Controlling Rx Drugs

(Spring 2016) A report issued by Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health states that physicians often prescribe more opioids than necessary in cases when they are not specifically required. The report also says that both state and federal rules for prescribing opioids are too lax and that physicians and pharmacists require more monitoring and education in this area. The report advises mandatory training for doctors and medical students on the topics of pain management and opioid prescription.

Covering a gamut, the recommendations range from educating physicians and coordinating with pharmacies to lowering demand by rallying communities and treating individuals with opioid addiction. 

Other guidelines include

• Give medical licensing boards more power to investigate high-risk prescribers and dispensers.
• Collect prescription information to pinpoint patients who may need addiction treatment.
• Ramp up drug take-back initiatives.
• Increase the availability of the opioid overdose-reversal drug naloxone.
• Require the use of prescription drug monitoring programs (this is voluntary in many states).
• Grant law enforcement more access to prescription data when necessary.

The American Medical Association (AMA) is approaching the problem from a different angle. It recently took a stand advocating the end of direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs, stating that the ads inflate the cost of medications and encourage patient demand for inappropriate treatment. In the past two years, pharmaceutical companies have invested $4.5 billion in advertising – a 30% increase.

As a push-back against the AMA’s statement, the trade group Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America argues that direct-to-consumer ads give accurate information to patients so they are better aware of treatments that may benefit them.

However, even though the AMA voted to ban pharmaceutical ads aimed at consumers, it is powerless to stop their continued production. At most, the AMA can lobby for legislation and make efforts to raise awareness of the issue. Drug advertising oversight is the job of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and only Congress can give the FDA the power to put an end to advertisements of this nature.

Fortunately, some standards do exist for drug ads. For example, ads are required to mention at least one approved use for the medication, the drug’s generic name and all associated risks of the drug. However, “reminder” ads that mention a drug’s name but not its use and help-seeking ads that point out a disease or condition but do not mention a certain drug’s name are exempt from these standards.

The FDA regulates these ads but does not require that drug companies submit ads for approval in advance. If an advertisement violates the FDA’s restrictions, it may be a moot point since many consumers have already noticed it.

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