Warning: Drug advertising may cause headaches, high costs, brand dependency, misdiagnosis, and unnecessary death.
And it could be coming to Canada.
CanWest, one of Canada’s three big media conglomorates is challenging Canadian rules against direct-to-consumer marketing of prescription drugs. They argue these restrictions restrict their freedom of speech.
But they don’t mention that the potential market for CanWest and other media companies is $500 million annually in new revenues.
Given the power of big pharma and media conglomerates and the federal government’s failure to curb cross-border ads and otherwise enforce the existing ban, CUPE and others are gravely concerned about this case.
CUPE is part of an ad hoc coalition opposing CanWest’s actions and in support of the current rules that keep American style drug ads off Canadian airwaves.
In November, National President Paul Moist spoke at a Ryerson University forum, at CUPE 3904’s invitation on the subject.
On March 4, Dr. Joseph Abramson, Harvard Medical School clinic instructor and author of Overdosed America: The Broken Promise of American Medicine will be giving a talk:
Drug ads: is corporate free speech more important than your health
- When:
- March 4, 2008 (19:30 - 21:00)
- Location:
- 7 Hart House Circle, University of Toronto
Dr. Abramson is one of our expert witnesses in the DTCA legal case, and he is coming to Toronto for the cross-examinations. He describes the pervasive influence that the pharmaceutical industry wields on research, publishing, education, and prescribing practices. Dr. Abramson also documents the particular adverse impacts that DTCA has on women and women’s health.