When do ads go too far?

Kizzume · Posted: Mon Mar 03, 2008 1:34 am Post subject: When do ads go too far?

Did THIS ad go too far?

I think it's pretty extreme. I want to try to find more extreme ads.

When IS it too far?

technocrat · Joined: 04 Dec 2007 Posts: 216

I think many ads go to far when they say something period, because it's usually propaganda or some dishonest technique to make the customer think something that they aren't really saying.

Consumer advertisement requires far stricter regulation and limitations, and perhaps warning labels.

Kizzume · Posted: Tue Mar 04, 2008 7:21 am Post subject:

Examples of ads that I think go to far, ALL OF THEM, are pharmaceutical drug ads. They have no business doing that while complaining that they "have" to keep the prices gouged for medications.

jq · Joined: 02 Dec 2007 Posts: 1089

technocrat · Joined: 04 Dec 2007 Posts: 216

The problem is that big pharma is very inefficient and they simply lie when they say they have to charge vast prices to make money. One contributor to the prices is the fact that they spend over 50% of their earnings on consumption advertisement alone. It's a big business in and of itself. And entirely unnecessary, since medical corporations have no business marketing their medications to the general public in the first place. The only relevant consumers are the medical professionals who read the results of treatments, product trials in professional journals.

Let's be realistic too; many of the products generated today are treatments that don't cure, but simply "treat." It makes more profit for the corporation to keep you stringing along. They also tend to focus on making a zillion, slightly altered versions of luxury medications like viagra while millions of people die of easily curable problems.

jq · Joined: 02 Dec 2007 Posts: 1089

Well, you have some good points on this.

I shouldn't indicate that I totally love the pharmas.

But I do believe that giving financial incentive is part of why they have succeeded at making groundbreaking medicines. As for not making a cure on purpose, you could be right. On the other hand, diseases like parkinsons aren't going away. People are going to keep getting it. So it isn't like finding a cure would get rid of the market.

technocrat · Joined: 04 Dec 2007 Posts: 216

i don't mean to promote a conspiracy theory. I don't think they got a guy in the backroom cackling and thinking up ways to suppress evidence. I just think they tend to put money into things for which they perceive to be in high demand in the countries that make up their wealthy, big markets. Its just more profitable to put funding into things rich people can afford and things that require people to take over and over.

I think incentive is important also. I bet we could also have advances in a more heavily regulated or nationalized system as well, though.

If I were in charge, I would ban pharma advertising as a first step.

dustin · Joined: 06 Dec 2007 Posts: 13

I don't care if they go to far or not, it's free speech. I don't want the goverment controlling all that much. Kids get all that stuff anyway at school, so I don't see the big deal.

Kizzume · Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2008 12:55 pm Post subject:

technocrat · Joined: 04 Dec 2007 Posts: 216

That and ads for medicines are often dishonest, sneaky, and designed to woo people through marketing propaganda. I'd nip that shit in the bud. But of course, no one supports my solution to the problem.

Kizzume · Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2008 4:59 pm Post subject:

Actually, I agree with you completely on that.

jq · Joined: 02 Dec 2007 Posts: 1089

What annoys me more is not advertisements on television, but advertisements when I go to a doctors office. ANyone else experience this? Last time I went into a doctors office I was surrounded by various posters and whatnot advertising various drugs while I waited for him to come in the room and was thinking, "man, I wonder how much free stuff they give this guy!"

When I worked at the hospital, we had drug reps coming in all the time with goodies to hand out.

Anyway back to last time I saw a doctor. I had an infection and he prescribed me some brand new antibiotic. ANd I said, "wait a minute doc. My insurance usually only covers generics. Is it possible that I can get something like doxycyclin so I can afford it?" I knew about Doxycyclin because thats what the navy gave my buddy in Afghanistan, on a daily basis, to prevent catching malaria. I knew it had to be cheap if the military was using it.

He said, "Oh sure, no problem. It will do the same exact thing." No shit, huh? hmmm......

What I want to know is, WHY IN THE FUCK WOULD HE PRESCRIBE ME SOMETHING MORE EXPENSIVE IF THERE IS SOMETHING CHEAP ON THE MARKET THAT DOES THE SAME EXACT THING?!?!?!? Clearly, someone from a pharmacutical was sucking his penis and giving him foot rubs or something.

It turns out that doxy is soo cheap that the co-pay on my insurance cost more than the actual price of the generic. If I remember right it ended up costing $8 for the doxy. Thank you very much!

technocrat · Joined: 04 Dec 2007 Posts: 216

He probably has some deal with the manufacturer. That's a sad side-effect of the modern system. The manufacturers have too much pull and can use slick methods to influence their decisions. There should be laws against them using non-peer review to market their products to doctors or the public. They shouldn't be allowed to give special benefits or deals that are incentives for doctors to prescribe the expensive stuff over the generic.

It's a natural consequence of poorly regulated capitalism involved in healthcare.

I know your problem. When I got to the doctor, it's the same thing, and in the waiting room, the have "medtv,' which is really a channel filled with endless pharmercials telling me to ask my doctor about their product.

[Libertarian view]But that's evil socialism and a violation of their rights! Obviously the free market's magical hand will fix the problem all by itself![/Libertarian view]

Kizzume · Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2008 5:47 pm Post subject:

Yeah, I've noticed that most of the hospitals around here are doing that "medtv" thing too. It's tragic if you ask me.

I really started first noticing the blatant ads at doctor's offices (paper pads, pens, posters) in the late 90's, but now it's at the point, like you have said, of "medtv" crap that's basically a big promotional for pharmaceutical companies, and then those companies have the audacity to claim that the reason why medications are so expensive is because of the costs of the research.

I KNOW how much it costs to advertise--more than ever since I've been working hard at the band thing. That's where MOST of their money is going!

jq · Joined: 02 Dec 2007 Posts: 1089

See though, that's what I like about Harborview. To my knowledge, none of the times I have been there did I see advertisement everywhere. And on the TV, its whatever some homeless dude turns it to. Nickelodian, MTV, CNN, you name it.

Too bad they're so expensive. But actually I have to say, I do love Harborview. Save for their long wait times (Way longer than say NW hospital,) they have the best staff and equipment. And they just have higher sanitation standards, too. Just recently at NW they had a huge Staph outbreak. Ridiculous.

As far as wait times are concerned, my experience has been that Valley Medical is by far the fastest. But I've only been in their ER once, so it could have been just a good night. Thing to note-- they too were bombarded with ads for crap.

Also, I don't know if you know this or not, but only part of NW hospital is non profit. I don't know exactly how that works but at least 3 of the buildings are said to be "for profit." I don't really get what that means. I just remember that's what I was told when I worked there.