Reports of over-prescribing and excess drug spending make regulation necessaryDrug commercials have become commonplace in the U.S. The average American watches more than nine drug advertisements a day, or more than 16 hours a yearopens in a new tab or window. Only two countries in the world, the U.S. and New Zealandopens in a new tab or window, permit direct-to-consumer marketing of prescription medications. Since the practice became routine in the 1990s, concerns have been voiced about how such marketing creates unhelpful and even harmful pressures on patients, doctors, and communities. And while those concerns are not new, recent reports...