Drug Companies and Profit

Are the costs of advertising being passed on to us? Obviously, yes! Simple math, the drug ads are advertising, it costs them money so in fact they raise the price of the prescription drugs. We would all most likely agree that the cost of prescription drugs should be lowered not raised. So why again are the drug companies advertising? To inform us, educate us and promote their drugs. So is the FDA controlling the amount of money spent on prescription drug ads? In researching, the answer is simply no. The FDA can not control how much drug companies spend on advertising. Also, the FDA has no control in participating in the ad making. So what is this telling us, the consumers? The drug companies are out to make more money from advertising, not to educate us or advise on what we think we might need.

The entire ad is required to mention:
-At least one approved use for the drug
-The generic name of the drug
-Under certain circumstances, ads can give only the most important risks
-For more detail, see brief summary/adequate provision (requires research from consumers)

Yet the ads fail to mention very important information about the drug:
-Cost
-If there is a generic version of the drug (same ingredients just cheaper)
-If there is a similar drug with fewer or different risks that can treat the condition
-How the drug works (its "mechanism of action")
-How many people who take the drug will be helped by it
and many more things the ads fail to mention