Critics want Congress to ban direct-to-consumer drug ads

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News brief on eye surgery/mammography too.

http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2006/06/05/newscolumn4.html?from\

_rss=1

Critics want Congress to ban direct-to-consumer drug

ads

San Francisco Business Times - June 2, 2006by Chris

Rauber

Thirty-nine medical, health and seniors' organizations

-- including several with Bay Area roots or membership

-- are urging Congress to halt the advertising of

prescription drugs to consumers, a $4 billion-a-year

ad onslaught that critics blame for unnecessarily

boosting the nation's skyrocketing health-care price

tag.

" Prescription drug ads are dishonest and dangerous, "

said Ruskin, executive director of Commercial

Alert, a Portland, Ore.-based nonprofit that opposes

" commercialism " and promotes public health. " They hype

the benefits and cloak the risks of prescription

drugs. "

Commercial Alert, the National Women's Health Network

and a host of other groups -- including San

Francisco-based Breast Cancer Action, the California

Chapter of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine

and the Congress of California Seniors -- joined in

the effort. They want Congress to ban so-called

" direct-to-consumer " prescription drug ads in the

media, with exceptions for print ads that provide

purely factual information. But taking on the Purple

Pill and other pharmaceuticals is a big challenge, and

they're well aware such an approach might end up being

ruled unconstitutional.

In that event, they want the proposed law's other

provisions to require added consumer warnings in such

advertising and subject pharmaceutical companies to a

3 percent " windfall profits " tax to fund additional

research on how heavily hyped drugs compare with other

alternatives. Some scientific literature, like a

recent special issue of the journal Public Library of

Science Medicine, suggests that this advertising tends

to convince consumers that many minor ailments or

conditions should be " medicalized " and regularly

treated with drugs, sometimes with dangerous side

effects or drug interactions.

Ruskin said the coalition just started trying to line

up sponsors in the House and Senate last week.

" Eventually, we'll get a bill, (but) it takes time, "

he said.

Last year, Commercial Alert got 211 professors from a

number of leading U.S. medical schools, including

Stanford, University of California at San Francisco,

Harvard, s Hopkins, University of Pennsylvania,

Columbia and Yale, to sign a statement asking for a

similar ban. But getting a bill introduced in Congress

-- much less passed -- could be a much tougher sell.

Here's looking at you

San Leandro's , M.D., in February became

the first Bay Area ophthalmologist to perform a

recently approved type of eye surgery that implants a

permanent manmade lens in nearsighted patients who

don't qualify for Lasik surgery. That includes

severely nearsighted patients or those with thin

corneas or " dry-eye " conditions.

The permanent refractive lens, called the Visian ICL

(implantable collamer lens), is made by Monrovia-based

STAAR Surgical Co. It earned U.S. Food and Drug

Administration approval late last year.

-- whose Eye Institute has offices in

San Leandro, San Francisco, Concord and San --

said he's the first Bay Area specialist to be

certified to perform the surgery. He also participated

in FDA clinical trials of the lens, which can be

surgically implanted in about 15 minutes under local

anesthesia. The surgery isn't cheap -- at $3,500 per

eye -- and isn't covered by health insurance, but

backers say the implant is maintenance free, can't get

lost, and offers results similar or better to those of

Lasik surgery.

So far, has performed more than 45 procedures,

and the new surgical technique represents " between 5

percent and 10 percent " of his practice's revenue, or

roughly $30,000 a month. Said : " We expect to

see continued growth " in this niche.

Hither & Yon

Mills-Peninsula Health Services, part of Sacramento's

Sutter Health system, last month opened a $9 million

Women's Center at its Mills campus in San Mateo, which

hospital officials hailed as the first in the region

to offer digital mammography.

The new technology is " the most exciting advance in

early cancer detection we have seen in a long time, "

said Harriet Borofsky, M.D., the health-care system's

director of breast imaging. Other services at the new

center include breast MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

and ultrasound, genetic risk counseling and

consultations with a cancer nurse specialist. The new

center was funded in large part by a $3 million pledge

from the Mills-Peninsula Hospital Foundation and

additional community donations of $2.5 million.

Rauber can be reached at (415) 288-4946 or

crauber@....

[Guest guest]

This is definitely needed. I am all for a ban on ads for pharmaceutical drugs, just like they banned cigarette ads many years ago. PattyRogene S <saxony01@...> wrote: News brief on eye surgery/mammography too.http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2006/06/05/newscolumn4.html?from_rss=1Critics want Congress to ban direct-to-consumer drugadsSan Francisco Business Times - June 2,

2006by ChrisRauberThirty-nine medical, health and seniors' organizations-- including several with Bay Area roots or membership-- are urging Congress to halt the advertising ofprescription drugs to consumers, a $4 billion-a-yearad onslaught that critics blame for unnecessarilyboosting the nation's skyrocketing health-care pricetag. "Prescription drug ads are dishonest and dangerous,"said Ruskin, executive director of CommercialAlert, a Portland, Ore.-based nonprofit that opposes"commercialism" and promotes public health. "They hypethe benefits and cloak the risks of prescriptiondrugs." Commercial Alert, the National Women's Health Networkand a host of other groups -- including SanFrancisco-based Breast Cancer Action, the CaliforniaChapter of the American Academy of Emergency Medicineand the Congress of California Seniors -- joined inthe effort. They want Congress to ban

so-called"direct-to-consumer" prescription drug ads in themedia, with exceptions for print ads that providepurely factual information. But taking on the PurplePill and other pharmaceuticals is a big challenge, andthey're well aware such an approach might end up beingruled unconstitutional. In that event, they want the proposed law's otherprovisions to require added consumer warnings in suchadvertising and subject pharmaceutical companies to a3 percent "windfall profits" tax to fund additionalresearch on how heavily hyped drugs compare with otheralternatives. Some scientific literature, like arecent special issue of the journal Public Library ofScience Medicine, suggests that this advertising tendsto convince consumers that many minor ailments orconditions should be "medicalized" and regularlytreated with drugs, sometimes with dangerous sideeffects or drug interactions. Ruskin said the

coalition just started trying to lineup sponsors in the House and Senate last week."Eventually, we'll get a bill, (but) it takes time,"he said. Last year, Commercial Alert got 211 professors from anumber of leading U.S. medical schools, includingStanford, University of California at San Francisco,Harvard, s Hopkins, University of Pennsylvania,Columbia and Yale, to sign a statement asking for asimilar ban. But getting a bill introduced in Congress-- much less passed -- could be a much tougher sell. Here's looking at you San Leandro's , M.D., in February becamethe first Bay Area ophthalmologist to perform arecently approved type of eye surgery that implants apermanent manmade lens in nearsighted patients whodon't qualify for Lasik surgery. That includesseverely nearsighted patients or those with thincorneas or "dry-eye" conditions. The permanent refractive lens, called

the Visian ICL(implantable collamer lens), is made by Monrovia-basedSTAAR Surgical Co. It earned U.S. Food and DrugAdministration approval late last year. -- whose Eye Institute has offices inSan Leandro, San Francisco, Concord and San --said he's the first Bay Area specialist to becertified to perform the surgery. He also participatedin FDA clinical trials of the lens, which can besurgically implanted in about 15 minutes under localanesthesia. The surgery isn't cheap -- at $3,500 pereye -- and isn't covered by health insurance, butbackers say the implant is maintenance free, can't getlost, and offers results similar or better to those ofLasik surgery. So far, has performed more than 45 procedures,and the new surgical technique represents "between 5percent and 10 percent" of his practice's revenue, orroughly $30,000 a month. Said : "We expect tosee continued

growth" in this niche. Hither & Yon Mills-Peninsula Health Services, part of Sacramento'sSutter Health system, last month opened a $9 millionWomen's Center at its Mills campus in San Mateo, whichhospital officials hailed as the first in the regionto offer digital mammography. The new technology is "the most exciting advance inearly cancer detection we have seen in a long time,"said Harriet Borofsky, M.D., the health-care system'sdirector of breast imaging. Other services at the newcenter include breast MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)and ultrasound, genetic risk counseling andconsultations with a cancer nurse specialist. The newcenter was funded in large part by a $3 million pledgefrom the Mills-Peninsula Hospital Foundation andadditional community donations of $2.5 million. Rauber can be reached at (415) 288-4946 orcrauberbizjournals. __________________________________________________