Might those prescription drug ads that dominated this year’s Super Bowl and punctuate your favorite show become a thing of the past? This is the goal of the latest bill introduced on the Senate floor on June 12, 2025, the End Prescription Drug Ads Now Act.
Many bills have been introduced in recent years to affect the messaging of prescription drug ads, but this latest effort by six Senate cosponsors is both broad sweeping and potentially timely, in that it has bipartisan support in the form of the Health Secretary’s campaign statements to eliminate pharmaceutical TV ads. The End Prescription Drug Ads Now Act would end prescription drug ads on TV, radio, print, digital platforms, and social media. The Act, as currently penned, is intended to apply “to any drug approved under section 505 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 355) or licensed under section 351 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262), regardless of when the drug was approved or licensed,”[1] meaning that currently approved drugs would not be grandfathered into allowing DTC ads.
While other bills have been introduced in both the current and past Congresses, those had more of a limited focus, often on price transparency and/or misleading content. For example, earlier this year Senator Richard Durbin, along with nine cosponsors, introduced the “Drug-price Transparency for Consumers Act of 2025,” which “requires consumer advertisements for prescription drugs and biological products to include certain price information if the drug or biologic is (1) covered under Medicare or Medicaid, and (2) required to include a risk summary under current law. Specifically, such advertisements must clearly and conspicuously disclose the wholesale price for a 30-day supply of the drug or biologic and explain that a consumer may pay a different amount for the drug or biologic depending on the consumer’s health insurance coverage. The requirement does not apply to advertisements for drugs or biologics with a wholesale cost of less than $35 for a one-month supply.”[2] For another example, Senator Durbin introduced a second bill this year, “Protecting Patients from Deceptive Drug Ads,” which is aimed at “false or misleading communications by a social media influencer or health care provider regarding a drug approved under section 505 or licensed under section 351 of the Public Health Service Act…”[3]
While broad sweeping in its intent to eliminate all DTC prescription ads, the impetus for the End Prescription Drug Ads Now Act has been characterized by two main issues. One issue, cited by bill co-sponsor Senator Angus King, is that the drug ads are biased and that the patient’s provider is the correct source to get the best possible information. Industry trade groups, such as Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), disagree and have spoken out that DTC ads are “designed to provide information based on fact-based research, so patients are better informed about their health care and treatment options.” [4] PhRMA has also lobbied against DTC bans on the grounds of first amendment violations.[5]
While it is difficult to quantify the effect of specific ads on consumer/provider behavior, a series of survey results published in the National Library of Medicine determined that nearly half of patient requests that were driven by DTC ad awareness were fulfilled primarily to accommodate the patient.[6] While this may be a concern, the fault would seem to lie with providers for acquiescing, rather than with the ads themselves.
Another issue, cited by bill co-sponsor Senator Bernie Sanders, is that the ads drive up prescription costs. Sanders stated that the 10 largest drug companies made over $100 billion in profit, and spent over $5 billion on ads.[7] This would mean that prescription ad costs comprise 5% of profits, or a return on profit of 20:1, far greater than the 4:1 ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) ratio (based on revenue) that is widely considered to be a “good” ROAS.[8] These figures indicate that the amount spent on prescription DTC advertising is not only not driving up product cost relative to other industries, but is actually a smaller percentage of the ad cost seen across other industries on average. This observation is consistent with Deloitte’s most recent estimate that the average cost to develop a drug in 2024 was $2.2 billion[9], an amount that dwarfs ad spend as a prescription cost driver. With only 10% of Phase 1 clinical trial drugs estimated to reach the approval stage, research and development indeed comprise a hefty cost component.[10]
In conclusion, the data appears to support the premise that even if a bill to ban DTC ads is successful, the cost savings would likely have little impact on the overall cost of prescription drugs. Further, banning DTC ads could result in reduced patient awareness and may lead to fewer conversations with providers about potentially beneficial prescription therapies. Patients may be better served with a solution that does not seek to limit information but that encourages providers to “hold the line” with patients and not reluctantly acquiesce to prescribe drugs in the face of patient preference.
Summer 2025 Newsletter:
Upcoming Changes to Product Grouping Fields and Their Impact
[1] Text: S.2068 — 119th Congress (2025-2026). https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2068/text?s=1&r=1&q=%7B%22search%22%3A%22end+prescription+drug+ads+now%22%7D
[2] Text: S.229 — 119th Congress (2025-2026). https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/229/text?s=2&r=3&q=%7B%22search%22%3A%22dtc+prescription%22%7D
[3] Text: S.652 — 119th Congress (2025-2026). https://www.congress.gov/119/bills/s652/BILLS-119s652is.xml
[4] “Sanders and King introduce bill to ban DTC advertising for prescription drugs,” Chain Drug Review, July 7, 2025.
[5] “Sanders, King target DTC pharma ads but the industry worries more about threats to its $2B R&D model,” Drug Discovery and Development. June 16, 2025. https://www.drugdiscoverytrends.com/sanders-king-target-dtc-pharma-ads-but-the-industry-worries-more-about-threats-to-its-2b-rd-model/
[6] “Direct-to-Consumer Drug Advertisement and Prescribing Practices: Evidence Review and Practical Guidance for Clinicians,” National Library of Medicine, September 15, 2020. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8131444
[7] “Sanders and King introduce bill to ban DTC advertising for prescription drugs,” Chain Drug Review, July 7, 2025.
[8] “What is Return on Ad Spend (ROAS),” GrowthLoop, September 20, 2024. https://www.growthloop.com/university/article/return-on-ad-spend#:~:text=ROAS%20is%20most%20helpful%20for,every%20$1%20spent%20on%20advertising.
[9] “Global pharma R&D returns rise as GLP-1 drugs help drive forecast growth,” Deloitte News, March, 25, 2025. https://www.deloitte.com/uk/en/about/press-room/global-pharma-rd-returns-rise-as-one-glp-drugs-help-drive-forecast-growth.html
[10] “Global Trends in R&D 2024: Activity, productivity, and enablers,” IQVIA, February 22, 2024. https://www.iqvia.com/insights/the-iqvia-institute/reports-and-publications/reports/global-trends-in-r-and-d-2024-activity-productivity-and-enablers