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# Senators Urge PhRMA to Support DTC Advertising Bill
- URL: https://www.fdaweb.com/senators-urge-phrma-to-support-dtc-advertising-bill/
- Published: 2025-01-31T12:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-14T14:52:09.000Z
- Author: David McFarland
- Tags: Drugs, #legacy-id-D5158587

Senators **Chuck Grassley** (R-IA) and **Dick Durbin** (D-IL) are urging the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) to support their bipartisan [*Drug-price Transparency for Consumers (DTC) Act*](https://links-1.govdelivery.com/CL0/https:%2F%2Fwww.grassley.senate.gov%2Fnews%2Fnews-releases%2Fgrassley-durbin-relaunch-bipartisan-effort-to-boost-transparency-in-prescription-drug-advertisements/1/01000194be218559-cc61f4cd-464b-47a2-8e80-80dde9b500c2-000000/NEvG2Ua8AYcjL3WTf-JHJXh93W5rlCUWm3eEi7uhtfQ=390?ref=fdaweb.com) that would require price disclosures on prescription drug advertisements to “empower consumer choice and reduce patients’ bloated spending on medications.”

The [legislation](https://www.grassley.senate.gov/download/drug-price-transparency-for-consumers-act?ref=fdaweb.com) was introduced last week and currently has six co-sponsors. A Durbin [statement](https://www.durbin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/durbin-highlights-bill-to-crack-down-on-prescription-drug-advertisements-boost-price-transparency-on-senate-floor?ref=fdaweb.com) says that in recent years the drug industry has sued to keep drug prices out of TV ads. “By requiring direct-to-consumer advertisements for prescription drugs to include a disclosure of the list price,” he said, “patients can make informed choices when inundated with drug commercials and pharmaceutical companies may reconsider their pricing and advertising tactics.”

In a [1/31 letter to PhRMA](https://links-1.govdelivery.com/CL0/https:%2F%2Fwww.grassley.senate.gov%2Fdownload%2Fgrassley-durbin-to-phrma%5F-drug-price-transparency-for-consumers-act/1/01000194be218559-cc61f4cd-464b-47a2-8e80-80dde9b500c2-000000/b2v9ZvV1HhPDE4g7qbU74RW19DM6C5GH9M997PNb2tY=390?ref=fdaweb.com), the lawmakers cite a recent study in the *Journal of the American Medical Association* that found that “more than two-thirds of drugs advertised on television were considered ‘low therapeutic value.’ This creates concern for taxpayers, as a review we requested from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found prescription drugs advertised on television accounted for 58% of Medicare’s overall spending on prescription drugs between 2016-2018.”

President Trump’s nominee for Health and Human Services secretary \[**Robert F. Kennedy Jr.**\] has expressed interest in outright banning this practice, the letter notes. “It would be wise for drug companies to adopt commonsense solutions to address the concerns that have been raised about DTC prescription drug advertising… We urge you to take the reasonable, minimal step of embracing our bipartisan legislation to empower patients and providers and commit to voluntarily disclosing list prices in DTC advertisements.”