Free drug samples can change prescribing habits of US dermatologists

The availability of free medication samples in dermatology offices in the USA appears to change prescribing practices for acne, a common condition for which free samples are often available, according to an article in JAMA Dermatology reported by EurekAlert. Free drug samples provided by pharmaceutical companies are widely available in dermatology practices in the USA.

The authors - Michael Hurley and colleagues from the Stanford University School of Medicine, California - investigated prescribing practices for acne vulgaris and rosacea. Data for the study were obtained from a nationally representative sample of dermatologists in the National Disease and Therapeutic Index (NDTI), a survey of office-based US physicians, and from an academic medical center where free drug samples were not available.

Branded and branded generic drugs (products that have novel dosage forms of off-patent products or use a trade name for a molecule that is off patent) accounted for 79 percent of the prescriptions written nationally by dermatologists compared with 17% at an academic medical center without samples. The average total retail cost of prescriptions at an office visit for acne was estimated to be twice as high ($465) nationally compared with about $200 at an academic medical center without samples.