A Ban on Drug Ads Is Bad for Your Health

They claim a drug ad ban will hold down the cost of prescription drugs. By that logic, we can cut the cost of hamburgers by prohibiting McDonalds from advertising the Big Mac.  

Stephen Moore: Unleash Prosperity Hotline – Here's Washington's latest terrible idea. VT Senator Bernie Sanders wants prescription drug ads removed from the TV airwaves. What's worrisome is that Trump's HHS Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., supports the ban as well.

They claim a drug ad ban will hold down the cost of prescription drugs. By that logic, we can cut the cost of hamburgers by prohibiting McDonalds from advertising the Big Mac.  

The ban is also rotten economics. Firms are expected to put at risk as much as $1 billion to research and develop a new drug and endure years of testing to get FDA approval, but then even after it's proven safe and effective, they aren't allowed to market the product? So a company can spend billions of dollars to advertise a Snickers bar or M&Ms, but not a penny to promote a drug that reduces pain and suffering and potentially saves countless lives?  

RFK and Bernie Sanders both slam drug ads based on studies that show patients who ask their doctors about a specific drug they saw advertised are much more likely to get a prescription. But imagine there were a new wonder drug on the market that cured breast cancer. The government refused to allow the pharmaceutical company to advertise to cancer patients that the drug exists. How many women might die without even asking their doctor if the new treatment might work for them? Why take that chance?