It’s time to ban Big Pharma’s advertising scheme

On Feb. 1, 2024, the advertising agency Publicis Health paid the state of Michigan nearly $11.7 million in a settlement for its role in the opioid crisis. The company was charged with downplaying the threat of OxyContin abuse, a potent opioid painkiller, and using public advertising to encourage users to increase their dosage. Publicis worked with the infamous pharmaceutical giant Purdue Pharma to aggressively market OxyContin from 2010 to 2019; in that same time frame, annual opioid overdoses in Michigan increased 154%. 

Publicis Health’s marketing scheme was so effective because it was both pervasive and unaccountable to oversight from medical professionals; opioids were broadcast onto consumer televisions, featured in branded merchandise and boosted in promotional material such as the catchy jingle “Get in the Swing with Oxycontin.” This direct-to-consumer advertising is only legal in the United States and New Zealand.

These ads can be beneficial, as they educate consumers on the health care options available to them. But without the discretion of medical professionals, there is no accountability for the companies marketing the products, who are incentivized to sell as much as possible. And when maximizing sales is the driving goal, pesky things like side effect disclaimers become obstacles. Sober promises and scary warnings are no way to turn a profit. 

So it makes sense then, that this marketing strategy quickly devolves into snake oil salesmanship. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asserts that at least 28% of outpatient antibiotic prescriptions are unnecessary,  prescriptions driven by direct-to-consumer advertising.

When media companies sell ad space to pharmaceutical companies, they’re doing more than just platforming dubious medical claims: They’re undermining their own legitimacy in the eyes of the American people.

Americans’ trust in the media is at an all-time low, in no small part because it is heavily funded by industry giants with track records of deceit. In 2022, pharmaceutical companies spent $8.1 billion on advertising, with a majority of that sum going to television ads. As corporate money continues to flow into traditional media outlets, Americans are rightfully concerned about corporate propaganda infiltrating their news and creating dangerous conflicts of interest. 

These ethical concerns aren’t just loose speculation, but recent history. In 1997, two reporters for WTVT — a Tampa, Fla. affiliate of Fox News — investigated the agrochemical company Monsanto’s genetically engineered bovine growth hormone, a product banned in most other industrialized countries over concerns that it causes cancer.

Their story was set to challenge many of the safety claims made by Monsanto and inform the public about the scale of rBGH and its dangers. Before the story could air, Monsanto interfered, threatening Fox News, a benefactor of their advertising money, with vague consequences. Then, the reporters claimed that the station forced them to insert false information defending the hormone’s safety. When they objected, these reporters were allegedly offered bribes and then fired for insubordination. To cap it all off, their story was buried for good.

Until the media sheds its ties to these organizations, public trust and viewership will continue to plummet, restricting the ability of journalists to inform Americans about important issues.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, faces mass scrutiny for his range of unorthodox public health proposals. But Kennedy knows these pharmaceutical titans well: He made a career out of litigating mass torts and personal injury cases against them. Now, he aims to ban direct-to-consumer advertising once and for all. 

The kneejerk reaction of those outside Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” circle is to write off all of his ideas — including this ban — because of his controversial rhetoric. This instinct must be resisted.

Though the number of opioid overdose deaths continues to decline, the opioid crisis is still ongoing. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is still launching new lawsuits against pharmaceutical groups for their role in boosting opioids. For the sake of the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have died of opioid overdose, we have to stop aggressive drug campaigns from ever having under-supervised access to millions of households again. And now that the mania of weight loss drugs has taken hold, you can find their direct-to-consumer ads on every platform, from your grandpa’s TV to your Instagram page. As the side effect lawsuits start piling up, we may look back and regret how quickly we jumped headfirst into this drug-buying frenzy, like so many others.

These money-crazed companies must be reined in by a return to vigilance. The key is bringing  the doctor back into the room and reestablishing the independence of the media. For a nation permanently scarred by its pharmaceutical industry, banning direct-to-consumer advertisement is the only way forward.

Hunter Ryerson is an Opinion columnist writing about Environmental Justice and public health in his column “Learning Environment.” He can be reached at hryerson@umich.edu.

Related articles

No Byline Policy

Editorial Guidelines

Corrections Policy

Source