Free Drug Samples May Be a Health Risk for Children (Part 2)

Also among the most widely distributed free samples were broad-spectrum antibiotics that are not used in the first line of treatment. Cutrona said that overuse of such drugs could contribute to the growing problem of antibiotic resistance. She noted that previous research has shown that free samples lead doctors to prescribe drugs that might not be the best choice. She went on to explain, “New medications are frequently released before their safety profile is fully understood, and samples tend to be newer medications. Free samples encourage the casual use of medications in our children before enough is known about potential harm.”

Although the prescription drug industry maintains that free samples fill an important role for poor or uninsured patients, the study found that these patients rarely receive the samples, as they do not have access to the doctors who distribute them. Of the children who received free samples, only 16 percent were uninsured for part or all of 2004, with less than one-third having low family incomes, which is defined as less than $38,000 for a family of four.

Ken Johnson, senior vice president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, an industry group, responded to the study in a statement and said that free samples offer doctors “valuable firsthand experience with new treatment options and can also play a valuable role in fostering the appropriate use of medicines.” He also noted, “While it is true that poor and uninsured patients are not the only recipients of drug samples, a patient's financial situation is a factor physicians often consider when distributing such samples.”