DIRECT TO CONSUMER RESPONSIBILITY: MEDICAL NEOLIBERALISM IN PHARMACEUTICAL ADVERTISING AND DRUG DEVELOPMENT

Purpose – This chapter explores the pharmaceutical industry’s strategic utilization of empowerment discourse in two realms: direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) and clinical drug development. Methodology – It draws upon two research projects that examine the role of the pharmaceutical industry in the political economy of healthcare in the United States: Ronald’s policy analysis and participant observation of DTCA policy hearings and Fisher’s participant observation and interviewing of the clinical trials industry. Findings – Empowerment rhetoric is mobilized by the pharmaceutical industry to create specific expectations about patient-consumer behavior, particularly the responsibilities associated with the consumption of drugs. Research implications – The social and economic implications of DTCA and drug trials must be understood within their broader historical and contemporary contexts of health advocacy, consumerism, and medical neoliberalism. Practical implications – The chapter offers alternative constructions of healthcare subjects and pharmaceutical practices that can mitigate the power of the pharmaceutical industry and bring about bette