DTC advertising creates awareness of diseases and treatment options, helps get patients into needed treatment and empowers patients with information. As noted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in comments before the FDA, “It can empower consumers to manage their own health care by providing information that will help them, with the assistance of their doctors, to make better-informed decisions about treatment options.”

A June 2003 study by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and published by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that DTC advertising accounts for less than two percent of the total U.S. spending for prescription medicines.

Patients who are more informed about and involved in their treatment due to DTC advertising adhere better to their physicians’ directions. According to a July 2004 report by the FTC and the Department of Justice, “. . . DTC advertising can increase compliance with pharmaceutical usage regimes and can assist in educating patients and health professionals about the risks, diagnosis and treatment of a particular medical condition.”

Many physicians and patients report that DTC advertising actually enhances their communications. According to a 2004 FDA patient survey, 93 percent of patients who asked about a drug reported that their physician “welcomed the question.” Of patients who asked about a drug, 77 percent reported that their relationship with their doctor remained unchanged as a result of the office visit.

Experts have not found any relationship between drug marketing and drug price. December 2003 FTC comments to the Food and Drug Administration included a statement that “. . . Consumers receive benefits from DTC advertising with little, if any, evidence that such advertising increases prescription drug prices. . . . DTC advertising accounts for a relatively small proportion of the total cost of drugs, which reinforces the view that such advertising would have a limited, if any, effect on price.”