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[English translation of article orginally appearing in the Dutch national paper "Trouw"]
Europa/European medicines advertisements American-style European patient and consumer organisations are concerned about plans to allow advertising for prescription-only medicines in Europe. "Say no to drug advertising American style" is the message of a symposium held today in Brussels. AMSTERDAM-Pharmaceutical manufacturers should be allowed to inform patients directly about medicines for asthma, AIDS and diabetes say EU Commissioners Liikanen (industry) and Byrne (public health). Last summer they prepared a proposal for a new European medicines law that gives free rein to commercial information about these medicines--now for a pilot period of five years. This type of "direct-to-consumer" (DTC) advertising is now prohibited in all countries of the world, except America and New Zealand. In the Netherlands, for example, information about medicines can only be sent to doctors, because they can determine its actual value and can protect the patient against misleading and overly positive promotion. This situation is old fashioned, says the European Commission. The patient is aware enough to be informed directly and to make his own choice about a medicine. And importantly, patient groups were said to have asked for the proposed legal changes. "No, the pharmaceutical industry has asked for this, with the help of an extremely powerful lobby", says European Parliamentarian A. de Roo (GreenLeft party). "And the patient organisations that have lobbied along with them are sponsored for a part by the industry." De Roo is strongly against the proposal that, according to him, opens the door to advertising for all prescription-only drugs. "That will only lead to extra and unnecessary medicines use and steeply increasing costs. Not the patients, only the companies will benefit from this." The Brit C. Medawar, one of the speakers of today and an expert in the area of drug safety, also says that this proposal doesn't come at the request of patients. "The reason that manufacturers here have lobbied so hard for it is because they are running into problems caused by a lack of innovation," states Medawar. "They are not able to develop enough new drugs; therefore they try to reap more benefit from their old ones." They will certainly accomplish that if DTC-advertising is allowed, concludes Health Action International (HAI), one of the organiser's of today's symposium. HAI's spokeperson, M. Ewen points to the situation in the US and New Zealand. "There it has led to quick and widespread use of new, expensive medicines that often are no better than less expensive, older drugs; to a shocking increase in the costs of medicine use, and to misleading information for patients." Of course patients need information, agrees Ewen. "But they need impartial information in which different drugs from various manufacturers are compared." J. Maaten, chairman of the VVD party in the European Parliament sees the need for the change. He talks about a 'step in the right direction'. "Patients are often unhappy with the idea that the doctor decides about their medicine choice. It is good to strengthen their position." Maaten agrees that DTC-advertising in the US has disadvantages. "All of the money that companies put into advertising cannot be used for the development of new drugs."In addition, in America not only is much more money put into advertising since DTC advertising was allowed in 1997 [sic], but also on pills. So much more, warns HAI, that healthcare has become unpayable and only half the population has reasonable health insurance. But this is a very careful proposal, says Maaten, that only plans to run for five years to gain experience. He expects the European Parliament to vote on the proposal in the summer. - END- |