We provide an overview of what is known about the impact of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of prescription drugs. Specifically, we explore the historical trends that led to the industry's increasing use of this form of promotion. Then, using the published literature to date, we review the impact of DTC advertising on the consumer, the medical profession, and the health care system. We con...

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To review the phenomenon of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of prescription medications in the media, with an overview of pertinent studies in the literature regarding patients' and healthcare professionals' perspectives on DTC advertising. DATA SOURCES Journal articles, media, and clinical experience. DATA SYNTHESIS DTC advertising of prescription medications is ext...

It has been shown that drug companies will sell more drugs when they use DTC advertising, but it is also true that many consumers who are suffering--unaware there is help for their symptoms--will learn from these ads that help is available. Advertising to consumers, like advertising to professionals, will continue to be one of the best methods of providing information. Of course, healthcare pro...

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to provide an overview of the economic and clinical impacts of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising on consumers and physicians. Design/methodology/approach – Controversy around the benefits and concerns associated with DTC advertising are summarized. The sources are sorted based on their position toward DTC promotions: defending or opposing. Two recent wo...

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To obtain information about the knowledge and attitudes of oncology nurse practitioners (ONPs) concerning the effect of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of prescription medications on prescribing patterns. DESIGN Exploratory survey. SETTING Oncology Nursing Society Nurse Practitioner Special Interest Group members in the United States. SAMPLE 221 of 376 ONPs complet...

The year of 1997 witnessed an important regulatory change in direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of ethical drugs. For the first time, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permitted brand-specific DTC ads on TV without a ”brief summary” of comprehensive risk information. This led to a three-fold growth of DTC advertising expenditure in four years, followed by an intensive debate about the ef...

Starting consumers off on the "path to purchase" by encouraging them to seek more information is a major goal of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising for prescription medications. But the authors found that a consumer's attitude toward DTC advertising can determine which of several paths he or she is likely to take. The attitudes of older adults are especially significant for pharmaceutical mar...

A recent addition to the debate about the benefits and harms of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of medicines and pharmaceuticals is a growing critique of DTC marketing and sale of genetic tests. Academic and policy literatures exploring this issue have, however, tended to focus on the sale of genetic tests, paying rather less attention to the particular implications of advertising. The glo...

This review surveys the developing market for direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic tests and examines the range of companies and tests available, the regulatory landscape, the concerns raised about DTC testing, and the calls for enhanced oversight. We provide a comparative overview of the situation, particularly in the United States and Europe, by exploring the regulatory frameworks for medical dev...

The authors empirically explore the revenue impact of marketing mix variables and their interactions. The findings include: pharmaceutical direct to consumer advertising (DTC) and detailing (sales force) affect demand synergistically; detailing raises price elasticity; and, detailing has a higher ROI than DTC. Other implications and future research directions are discussed.