FDA's Office of Prescription Drug Promotion (OPDP) has undertaken 43 studies of Rx drug promotion to consumers and professionals since the first prescription drug ad aired on television on May 13, 1983. In that ad, the president of Boots Pharmaceuticals Inc. called for people taking the prescription drug Motrin (ibuprofen) to ask their doctors about Rufen. "It's the same drug but with one important difference: Rufen can cost you considerably less," he said.
In the 1990s, companies ran a limited number of TV ads since they were required to provide extensive disclosure of...