At last the Trump administration is taking action that I approve of. He has issued a memorandum that will in effect remove advertising of prescription drugs on TV, returning to a policy that was in effect until the 1990s.
What is the purpose of these ads? The pharmaceuticals industry would say that it’s important that people know what new medications are available so they can ask their doctor.
They’ll say it’s free speech, with benefits to both the drug maker and the public. But the ads are innocuous, feel-good representations of the result of using the drug being advertised. They come close to being false or misleading advertising.
The ads provide no useful information other than that the drug exists. Deciding whether a drug is right for a person requires the analysis of complex information, both about the patient and the drug. It’s doctors who should therefore be the target of such information, whether it be in the form of advertising or other material.
Has the health of the nation been improved by such advertising? I know of no research that says that’s the case. The ads have, however, been a huge source of revenue for both big pharma and TV. And that’s the reason why they will fight this attempt to keep ads from TV.
If someone is not confident that their doctor is up to date with his information, they can easily do research on the internet to find out what the latest drugs are for their condition and what the pros and cons of the various drugs are, so they can have an informed discussion with their doctor.
I would actually propose that the Trump administration expand their action, removing such ads from print media as well. The reason is the same as that for removing them from TV.
When I was growing up, there were no such ads either in the print media or TV. And people were none the worse for it.
Preserving American Values 
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