“This is catastrophic in my office, with patients coming in and demanding a drug they saw on television.” Doctors want AMA to seek ban on prescription drug ads for consumers — “The American Medical Association would urge the government to ban prescription drug ads from television, newspapers and magazines under a proposal many doctors say is needed to keep patients from being misinformed.” First AMA position in a long time that I, as a physician (but not an AMA member) can get behind. Proponents note that ads undermine physician credibility if a physician thinks the advertised drug isn’t the best choice (“but they said on TV…”). And it often won’t be, of course, since the pharmaceutical companies’ best interests in spinning a product to you have nothing to do with your best interests as a consumer. ABC