Drug makers get tax break to sell you drugs
Jan 5th, 2010 by Afiya
business-tax deductions for putting out Ask Your Doctor advertising.
The U.S. and New Zealand are the only two countries in the world that allow direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs. Critics of drug ads say they drive up health care costs by encouraging people to ask their doctors for specific drugs, instead of letting the doctor choose the most appropriate therapy.
Drug makers will continue to get Both the House and Senate considered options to end drug ad tax deduction as a business expense. But none of the options to restrict consumer drug ads ever made it out of committee into the health care reform bills.
The options to end the deductions were opposed by broadcasters and other lobbying groups for magazines, newspapers and publishers. Drug makers spent about $4 billion in drug advertising last year, to get you to ask your doctor for their drug.
