Canadian Drugs −
Drug Companies in the USA Overspend on Marketing

Pharmaceutical companies in the United States are serious about getting you to use their medical products. While letting customers know about medications that can help them manage their disease is one thing, these companies really go the distance with their marketing. According to Wikipedia, about $30 billion dollars was spent on pharmaceutical marketing with half of the money spent on distributing free samples. In comparison, companies in Canada spent a little under $2 billion in 2004 marketing Canadian drugs. Even though pharmaceutical marketing, also called medico marketing, has been around for a long time, there is several reasons why this excessive marketing is not helpful to the American people.

The main reason is that the company makes up their lost money by charging more for the drugs. The medication offered by American pharmaceutical companies are some of the most expensive drugs in the world especially when compared to Canada drugs. Not only does the cost of the drugs include the cost of research and development, manufacturing, and marketing, they are also priced to cover lawsuits and lost sales due to the development of generic versions. This produces an unfortunate situation where a relatively inexpensive drug becomes out of reach for most people because the pharmaceutical company is charging 5-10 times the cost to produce.

Even with insurance, some people are finding it difficult to afford their medication. Those who are uninsured and/or living on a fixed income find it doubly hard to get the medicines they need to manage their disease. This is why many of them turn to generic versions. Companies who manufacture generic drugs do not need to advertise because, honestly, the big pharmaceutical companies do it for them every time they mention the generic name of the drug. Other people turn to Canada drugs for medications that have no generic counterparts due to patents or other legal circumstances.

In Canada, health care costs, including medication, is regulated by the government. In addition, pharmaceutical companies don't spend as much on marketing. This means they can charge less for the medication which brings into the realm of affordability for both people in Canada and in the United States. Since Canada has the same quality control regulations and standards in place as other first world countries, people can be assured that they are getting the same or better quality drugs as they would get in their own countries. Coupled with the convenience of doorstep delivery, it is no wonder people are turning to Canada for the medicinal needs.