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Virginia State Board of Pharmacy v Virginia Citizens Consume
1
Questions to Ask
- Is advertising drug prices protected under the first amendment?
- Is it ethical for pharmacies to advertise their pricing to customers?
- Does the customer deserve to know how much different drugs might cost?
- Could advertising drugs lead to dishonesty?
- Could advertising drugs cause more damage than good?
William Rehnquist: "Under the Court's opinion, the way will be open not only for dissemination of price information, but for active promotion of prescription drugs, liquor, cigarettes, and other products the use of which it has previously been thought desirable to discourage."
Harry Blackmun: "Commercial speech" is not wholly outside the protection of the First and Fourteenth Amendments, and the Virginia statute is therefore invalid.
Supreme Court
Majority Opinion
Dissenting Opinion
- Commercial Speech is protected under the First Amendment. It is critical for consumers to know drug prices, and it is essential for companies to advertise them. However, there can still be laws concerning false and misleading information.
- Allowing pharmacies to advertise drugs is a gateway to advertising cigarettes and alcohol to people who shouldn't be seeing that sort of information.
Conclusion
History
The court decided 7-1 that commercial speech is protected under the first amendment. It is in the economic interest to advertise drug prices to the public.
Commercial Speech
The Virginia Citizens Consumer Counsel, Inc., brought a suit against Virginia State Board of Pharmacy challenging a law that said a pharmacist should not be able to advertise their drug prices as it is "unprofessional conduct" and a violation of "commercial speech".
Commercial Speech: speech which promotes some type of commerce (Cornell Law School)
Works Cited
"Commercial Speech." LII / Legal Information Institute, www.law.cornell.edu/wex/commercial_speech. Accessed 6 Apr. 2020.
Hudson, David Jr. L. "Virginia State Board of Pharmacy V. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, Inc." Middle Tennessee State University | Middle Tennessee State University, The First Amendment Encyclopedia, www.mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/214/virginia-state-board-of-pharmacy-v-virginia-citizens-consumer-council-inc. Accessed 6 Apr. 2020.
"Va. Pharmacy Bd. V. Va. Consumer Council, 425 U.S. 748 (1976)." Justia Law, supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/425/748/. Accessed 6 Apr. 2020.
"Virginia State Board of Pharmacy v. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, Inc. (No. 74-895)." LII / Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 24 May 1976, www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/425/748. Accessed 6 Apr. 2020.