To Ban or Not to Ban - That Is The Question: The Constitutionality of a Moratorium on Consumer Drug Advertising

摘要

In 2007, House and Senate bills were introduced in Congress which would have empowered the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to impose a moratorium on direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of certain newly approved drugs.1 This article considers whether such legislation would violate the First Amendment.2 The conclusion the author draws is that such a moratorium and, indeed, any moratorium on DTC advertising, is likely to be deemed an unconstitutional restriction on freedom of speech, for several reasons, each of which will be elaborated upon below.3