CBO Report Details Drugmakers’ Promotional Spending Habits

As congressional lawmakers continue to consider discounts and other measures from drugmakers to reduce the cost of the healthcare overhaul, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released a report that details drugmakers’ advertising expenditures in ways that may affect government spending. In 2008, for example, drugmakers spent $4.7 billion on direct-to-consumer advertising. Such spending “may be having an impact on the functioning, cost, and effectiveness of the nation’s health care system,” the report says.
Drug Industry Daily