I just watched a piece on today’s news showing the reasons drugs cost so much to consumers in the United States. There was a question as to why drugs cost more in the U.S. than other countries.

One of the points made involved mentioning discounts available to customers during the television ads for Drug A. This might help defray costs. They also talked about the cost of research and development and that companies should be able to recoup costs and make a profit.

I understand the fact that companies should make a profit on their product. What I don’t understand and never have understood is why billions of dollars must be spent on advertising for a product that you can’t buy without a prescription!

It seems to me that if Big Pharma kept the billions they spent every day to advertise a product that can’t be bought over the counter, they could easily bring the cost of that drug down to earth. Therefore, there would be no need for these artificial “discounts.”

Of course, the bottom line is if more patients continue to ask their doctors for Drug X, then eventually Drug X will be prescribed to more patients. Therefore, Big Pharma’s financial bottom line increases. It’s time to stop advertising for drugs you can’t buy over the counter. Let the doctors prescribe the medications you need, not the patient!

Steve Pomelow

Gorham