When John Edwards knocked drug companies for spending "twice as much" on marketing and administration as on research, he perpetuated a myth popular amongst pharma naysayers, Fortune magazine says. With only 21 percent of Americans approving Big Pharma's performance (down from 60 percent 10 years ago), it's no wonder people are ready to believe.
The erroneous stat? Lumping marketing and admin together. That line item doesn't really show how much companies spend on selling their products. It includes stuff like office leases, for example. The real numbers, Fortune says? Drug makers spent $55 billion on research in 2006, compared with $12 billion on sales, promotions, and ads.
- read the report in Fortune
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