May 16, 2025
TOPLINE
In case you missed it, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called for reining in Big Pharma’s direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of prescription drugs during a recent interview on “Special Report with Bret Baier” on The Fox News Channel.
“I met with pharmaceutical companies yesterday and had a very frank discussion with them on ways to limit TV commercials,” Kennedy said. “When you advertise a pharmaceutical product, it’s the government that is the one most likely going to pay for that product… you get a tax deduction to put that ad on TV, so that federal taxpayers are paying for the ad, then they’re paying for the product.”
“We’re the only nation in the world that allows that kind of advertising on TV,” Kennedy continued. “We’re a complete outlier. There’s one other country like New Zealand that allows limited [DTC advertising] but nothing like we do.”
Earlier this year, The Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing (CSRxP) released an analysis that found taxing or prohibiting DTC ads for the ten largest pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. would result in increased federal tax revenue between $1.5 and $1.7 billion per year. Read the full analysis HERE.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“[Big Pharma companies are] usually advertising [brand-name drugs] because they want to bury the existence and the availability of generic drugs that are much cheaper and equally effective. The consumer is spending not his own money, but most often ... taxpayer money. Furthermore, the pharmaceutical ads are getting tax deductions, so we are funding it."
- Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
DATA POINTS YOU SHOULD KNOW
$805.9 Billion
The total pharmaceutical expenditures in the United States in 2024, a 10.2 percent increase compared to 2023, according to a report from the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.
TWEETS OF THE WEEK
@realtahiramin: “Between 2020-2024, Novo Nordisk spent 41% more on shareholder enrichment (buybacks and dividends) than it did on R&D.”
@DavidArmstrongX: “I have written many healthcare stories, but none about my own health until now. I decided to do so after learning one of my drugs costs nearly $1,000 a pill and just 25 cents to make. What I found was an incredible story of discovery and exploitation. https://www.propublica.org/article/revlimid-price-cancer-celgene-drugs-fda-multiple-myeloma”
ROAD TO RECOVERY
Inside Health Policy: Kennedy Backs Senators’ Bipartisan Push To End Pharma Ad Tax Breaks
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday endorsed bipartisan legislation to strip pharmaceutical companies of tax breaks for direct to consumer (DTC) television advertising on prescription drugs, calling the practice “insidious” and a misuse of taxpayer dollars. Kennedy said his office is preparing a broader policy proposal on banning drug advertising and expects to release it “in the next few weeks.” Testifying before the Senate health committee Wednesday (May 14), Kennedy said drug ads drive patients toward expensive branded medications over generics while the companies are subsidized twice by taxpayers -- through Medicare and Medicaid spending and via tax-deductible advertising expenses. “We are funding it,” Kennedy said. “The consumer is spending not his own money (to pay for drugs), and most often our money.”
Inside Health Policy: RFK Jr. Pushes DTC Ad Limits In ‘Frank Discussion’ With Drugmakers
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. met this week with leaders of pharmaceutical companies for what he described as a “very frank discussion” about reining in direct-to-consumer (DTC) television advertising of prescription drugs. While Kennedy did not announce formal regulatory steps, his comments signal a potential policy shift at HHS and hint at possible collaboration with Congress to restrict or eliminate tax breaks for DTC advertising. “I had a very frank discussion with them about ways to limit TV commercials,” Kennedy said in an interview with Bret Baier on Fox News Thursday (May 8). “When you advertise a pharmaceutical product, and the government is the one most likely to pay for it, you're essentially asking taxpayers to foot the bill for ads and for the product itself.”
Inside Radio: Lawmakers Seek To Curb Big Pharma’s Tax Write-Offs For Ads.
There is a new effort in Congress to end the tax deduction for expenses related to direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs on radio, television and other media. The bill’s sponsors say it is driving up health care costs, by promoting “inappropriate” prescribing practices, and increasing unneeded spending on medications… The Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing estimates that prohibiting pharmaceutical advertising could increase federal tax revenues by $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion annually from 10 of the largest pharmaceutical companies operating in the U.S.
Inside Health Policy: CSRxP Statement On President Trump’s Most Favored Nation Executive Order
The Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing (CSRxP) issued the following statement on Tuesday on President Trump's signing of an executive order titled “Delivering Most-Favored-Nation Prescription Drug Pricing to American Patients.” “CSRxP appreciates President Trump’s commitment to lowering prescription drug prices in America, and for rightly diagnosing the egregious prices set by Big Pharma as the root cause of the problem,” said CSRxP spokesman Jon Conradi.
PHARMA’S POOR PROGNOSIS
Bloomberg Law: Merck’s New Keytruda Shot Is A Rare Real-Time ‘Product Hop’
Merck & Co.‘s planned debut this fall of an injectable form of its breakthrough cancer treatment Keytruda will simplify care, expand access, and save more lives, the company says. But by shifting patients to a version protected by newer patents, it will also extend Merck’s control over the world’s best-selling drug. Merck is performing a sleight-of-hand known as a “product hop” by tweaking how the drug is delivered. The pivot will preserve its exclusivity and could box out lower-cost rivals for Keytruda, which last year made $29.5 billion globally. “Product hopping is not something companies do without a good reason,” said Anna Kaltenboeck, a health economist who’s worked on pharmaceutical pricing and market access strategies. “And that reason is usually financial.”
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