In 2011, $6.3 billion worth of sample-sized drugs were distributed in America, according to market research firm Cegedim Strategic Data.
Among doctors, dermatologists are the ones who most distribute free samples of medicines to their patients. But new research published in 'Jama Dermatology' shows that this habit could ultimately disadvantage the 'pockets' of sufferers.
Physician associations have become increasingly wary of distributing free drug samples, which have already been banned by Kaiser Permanente, many academic medical centers, the Veterans Health Administration, the US military, and several private clinics.
Critics of this practice say that if the goal is to make expensive drugs available to low-income, uninsured patients, there are better ways to do it.
Well, a group of researchers at Stanford University has taken a close look at how these free samples can affect prescriptions compiled by dermatologists. And they focused on prescribing patients newly diagnosed with adult acne. Based on data from the National Disease and Therapeutic Index, the researchers found that dermatologists are the doctors who use free samples the most: in 2010, they accompanied all prescriptions with a free 18%, compared to 12% in 2001 .
In stark contrast to physicians in other specialties: On average, only 4% of their prescriptions were matched with a free sample in 2010, down from 7% in 2001. And the drugs that were most frequently matched with a free sample were also found to be the more prescribed in general.
But often it's not even the cheapest products: in 2010, nine of the 10 most popular acne medications were
