Why do prescription drug commercials have to be so long & tell all the side effects? Some law?

Question

Isn't it annoying? Can't they just say "Check with your doctor as all medications may have side effects"? Isn't it really silly when they have a "doctor" sitting at his desk telling all the side effects that include causing the problems the drug is supposed to stop?

Answer 1

prescription drug commercials are the cheesiest most ridiculous most american crappiest thing in the world, they would sell you down the drain with brain damage if they thought it would make them a buck. its a legal requirement. most pharmaceuticals can cause worse problems than they cure.

Answer 2

It's a legal requirement that any reported symptom has to be made known, no matter how small.

I once read that 1 out of 10 hospital beds in the UK are occupied by someone suffering side-effects of a prescribed medical treatment.

Answer 3

The real question is "Why are they running so many commercials?" MONEY! I've been to almost 50 countries and the U.S. is the only one  bombarding the population with drug commercials. Amerians want a quick-fix pill to solve everything. So here's the scam: Commercials drive customer inquiries to the doctors. Pharmaceutical reps give free samples to the doctors and reward them with trips and other compensation for writing prescriptions of their drug vs. the competitors drug. (It's true, research it) Drug companies track stock movement at local pharmacies to follow market penetration of the drugs and reward the pharmaceutical reps with raises and incentives for increasing penetration. Your insurance company gets stuck with the bill and raises your rates each year. You get depressed or find another "symptom" on TV and go to the doctor to make another "inquiry" about a drug you hearad about. Then it starts all over again! Brilliant!  

Answer 4

Listing of the side effects have to be included in prescription drug TV ads by law (it's in the Clinton-era regulations that allowed such commercials passed in 1996).

The US and New Zealand are the only countries that allow such commercials.