The $4 billion a year spent by the drug industry [3] on direct-to-consumer advertising [4] promoting drugs is generating a political backlash. "There's a lot of support for a ban on direct-to-consumer advertising, and the Democrats know it," said Gary Ruskin, Commercial Alert's executive director. Both Representative John Dingell [5], the new chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Senator Edward Kennedy [6], the new chairman of the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, have previously expressed concerns about drug industry advertising. One proposal - opposed by Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America [7], the industry peak body - is that there be a two-year moratorium on ads after a drug is approved. Reflecting the new political mood, a forthcoming drug industry conference [8] is advertising a session: "How likely is a DTC advertising moratorium? How can I build a product launch plan that will prepare for such action?"