Legal And Ethical Considerations In Marketing Example Essay Example

intellectual property rights, evaluating how effectively they balance competing interests.

The focus of my research will be on ethical issues related to marketing and advertising, intellectual property, and product safety regulations. I will specifically address the drawbacks of Direct-to-consumer marketing by drug companies and compare and contrast the regulations and suggestions for improvement in the operation of compounding pharmacies based on the Pharmacy/Compare scenario provided in the assignment.

Boundless.com states that ethical marketing decisions and efforts should align with the needs of customers, suppliers, and business partners.

Unethical behavior, including price wars, selective advertising, and deceptive marketing, can have a detrimental effect on a company's relationships. Consumers nowadays prefer ethical businesses that demonstrate care and uphold social responsibility towards the environment. When an organization prioritizes sustainability, it fosters trust in business-to-consumer relationships and indicates that the company operates with integrity across all aspects. Having business ethics is a unique selling point, starting from product development and distribution stages.

According to Boundless.com, ethical issues in marketing arise from conflicts and disagreements surrounding expectations and conduct in business relationships. Various aspects of marketing have ethical risks, including advertising and promotion. In the past, tobacco was advertised in a way that falsely claimed health benefits. Nowadays, not only is this practice against the law, but it also goes against moral ethics. However, the law does allow for puffery, which is a legal term.

The distinction between mere exaggeration and deception is difficult to define. Sexual innuendo is commonly used in advertisements but is also considered a type of sexual harassment. Violence is a concern, especially in ads targeting children or likely to be viewed by them. Certain products

may deeply offend some people while appealing to others, such as feminine hygiene products, hemorrhoid medication, and constipation relief. The advertising of condoms is now deemed acceptable for AIDS-prevention purposes, although some still perceive it as promoting promiscuity.

Negative advertising techniques involve emphasizing the drawbacks of competing products instead of promoting the benefits of one's own. These tactics are commonly employed in the political sphere. Matters concerning intellectual property rights largely revolve around the act of claiming someone else's ideas or work as your own. The ongoing debate surrounding the "fair use" policy for copyrighted materials in education shows that resolving issues related to fair use cannot simply rely on established principles of property rights.

The act of copying a book involves labor and may result in the creation of property in the copy, unlike theft which involves labor to take someone else's property or invade their privacy. However, there are opposing arguments to this idea that I will discuss further. Additionally, the electronic transmission of data adds complexity to determining what qualifies as a "copy." For instance, should text from a terminal's database be considered a copy?

Is an electronic copy of a data file similar to a paper copy of a printed work? Additionally, the development of computer software poses a threat in blurring the line between copyright and patent. Traditionally, patents protect innovative processes or products derived from these processes. In exchange for registering and making the process public, inventors are granted a limited monopoly. Copyrights provide similar protections, albeit for a longer duration, to the unique expression of ideas. Computer software is a combination of both original expressions of existing ideas

(e.g., displaying a print spreadsheet on a video terminal) and new processes (e.g., transforming a calendar into an algorithm for displaying and printing calendars). It is undeniable that computer software and hardware are reshaping the distinction between production processes eligible for patents and idea expressions eligible for copyright. The significant issues regarding product safety regulation include environmental restrictions, product quality, fatty ingredients, and marketing directed towards children.

The FDA (2011) predicts that imports in our nation will steadily increase over the next decade, with today's import numbers expected to quadruple. Our country heavily depends on other countries for producing food, drugs, cosmetics, and devices used daily. Around 10% to 15% of all food consumed by households in the U.S. is imported from abroad. Moreover, nearly two-thirds of fruits and vegetables sourced outside the U.S., along with 80% of domestically consumed seafood.

Approximately half of the medical devices and 80% of the active pharmaceutical ingredients used in medications within this nation are either imported or produced elsewhere. The FDA plays a crucial role in overseeing this global trade. Presently, around 25 cents out of every dollar spent by Americans is on products that fall under FDA regulations. These items constitute roughly 10% of all imports into the United States, originating from over 300,000 facilities across 150 countries. I share Public Citizen's Commercial Alert's viewpoint advocating for a prohibition on direct-to-consumer marketing of prescription drugs by pharmaceutical companies.

ETC advertising, also known as promotions targeting patients instead of healthcare professionals, is conducted through different media channels like print, social media, TV, and radio. The FDA regulates these promotions (Investigated). According to Commercial Alert by Public Citizen, pharmaceutical

advertising has adverse effects on public health. It increases drug expenses, results in unnecessary prescriptions that burden taxpayers financially, and can be hazardous or fatal for patients.

Healthcare professionals, like doctors and nurses, have the responsibility of assessing the suitability of drugs for individual cases. Despite this, prescription drug advertising can influence these professionals to prescribe specific medications that may be less effective, costlier, or more risky. This interference has the potential to disrupt the therapeutic process and impact the relationship between medical professionals and patients.

Prescribing drug advertising is a lengthy process because patients must be educated about the deceptive nature of the advertisements they come across. These ads are not informative, but instead misleading by using emotional images and omitting vital information about the drugs and how to properly use them, as well as important details regarding side effects and contraindications found on the complete FDA-approved label. The presence of unavoidable financial conflicts-of-interest in drug companies compels them to exaggerate the benefits and minimize the drawbacks of their products.

To ensure transparency, direct-to-consumer prescription drug advertising should only be permitted if it includes the full FDA-approved label. Furthermore, visuals used in drug ads should prioritize informative content over persuasive elements. Television and radio advertisements for drugs should be prohibited as they fail to meet truthfulness standards. As Compare and its parent company observed soaring profits and Pharmacies stock price neared $300 per share, a growing number of individuals who received DADA reported a significant rise in heart attacks.

According to David & PL (2013), state boards of pharmacies regulate compounding pharmacies and other pharmacies under the existing regulatory framework. This implies that unless

mandated by state laws, drugs produced by compounding pharmacies do not go through thorough review by the FDA or any other regulatory body. Therefore, the FDA's jurisdiction over compounding drugs and pharmacies is uncertain despite its authority over drug manufacturing. The purpose of Senate Bill 959 is to provide clarity regarding the oversight responsibilities of both state and federal authorities.

In spite of being aware of the increasing number of heart attacks, the pharmacy decided to disregard this information and continued fulfilling substantial orders for the medication. Furthermore, they granted generous bonuses to their executives and managers. This emphasizes the significance of implementing an improved regulatory system to prevent similar situations from happening in the future. Hospital pharmacies, physician office practices, and other purchasers within the "large-scale compounding-manufacturing industry" would greatly benefit from such measures (Thompson, 2013). Nonetheless, it seems that under the current regulatory system of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), there were limited actions that could have been taken in this particular case.

To prevent gaps in oversight of compound drug manufacturing nationwide, it is necessary to grant the FDA more power over compounding pharmacies. The use of Collegian intellectual property by pharmacies did not align with utilitarianism. Utilitarianism is widely understood and commonly applied as an ethical theory. According to BEEN (2011), business conduct is considered proper if it produces the greatest good for the greatest number of individuals. The term "good" refers to the net benefits that affect the parties involved in a choice. Therefore, utilitarians argue that moral choices should be evaluated by calculating the net benefits of each available alternative action. BEEN (2011) provides an example, stating that

a pharmaceutical company may choose to release an officially approved drug with some side effects as long as it helps more people combat a particular disease than those troubled by minor side effects. Utilitarianism contrasts with demonology or "duty-based ethic," which focuses on actions rather than consequences. In summary, adhering to this approach implies individuals following an ethical framework where they act in accordance with legal obligations or their employer's policies out of obligation (Killing).According to this theory, the field of Pharmacy is considered ethical. However, stakeholders prioritize success and profitability over the well-being of collateral workers.

The demonology practice is centered around the idea of fulfilling one's duty regardless of the outcome, even if it involves harmful actions like killing. On the other hand, virtue ethics are qualities that reflect honesty and fairness in the pursuit of economic success, which is not aligned with the practices followed by Pharmacies Collegian. According to Dobson (2007), virtue ethics aims to achieve a specific kind of morally inclusive excellence. Aristotle referred to this as demoniac, which can be understood as 'happiness' or 'human flourishing'.

The approach to ethics discussed here can be characterized by four main attributes. Firstly, it highly values certain universally accepted virtues of character. In fact, true ethical behavior is achieved through the cultivation and refinement of these virtues. Secondly, it emphasizes the presence of a supportive community that fosters the development of these virtues. Thirdly, virtue-ethics theory emphasizes that moral living goes beyond following rules or guidelines; it requires the ability to make sound moral judgment.

In conclusion, it is crucial for the nurturing community to successfully identify and emulate moral exemplars or

role models in order to promote morality. The theory of ethics of care, developed by feminist thinkers, focuses on determining the rightness or wrongness of actions. However, this theory contradicts the use of Collegian intellectual property by Pharmacies. Virginia Held, a feminist philosopher, is among those who have proposed an "ethics of care" as a potential alternative to conventional ethical theories like demonology, utilitarianism, and virtue ethics.

In her presentation, she states that "the ethics of care highlights the moral duty to fulfill the needs of those who rely on us" (2006, 10). Care is viewed as a value and an action, valuing ethical emotions such as "sympathy, empathy, sensitivity, and responsiveness," and recognizing that even "anger can be a component of the moral outrage we should experience when individuals are treated unjustly or inhumanely. From my personal ethical perspective, I believe numerous business leaders act inhumanely because they either deny that people are genuinely being harmed or simply prioritize generating substantial profits regardless of the consequences. This makes it simpler for Pharmacy to safeguard their intellectual property while also utilizing intellectual property in Colombia. To evade scrutiny from the FDA, they established a wholly-owned subsidiary named Compare which functioned as a compounding pharmacy to distribute the new formulation through prescriptions. One potential approach for Pharmacy to compensate both the people and nation of Colombia is by providing incentives to Collegian employees and implementing initiatives that benefit both stakeholders and staff members.

Furthermore, it is essential to implement a sustainability program to replenish the utilized and distributed resources. Additionally, considering the impoverished living conditions of the Collegians, an alternative form of compensation could be to

provide them with a livable headquarters furnished with basic amenities like running water and electricity. Furthermore, it is crucial to offer medical benefits to support their health, as they endure physical strain by walking long distances of up to five miles and carrying heavy baskets weighing up to 50 pounds at times. A company similar to Pharmacies in evading legal loopholes is Glacis, a British Columbia-based company that has owned the Imperial Mine for the past 17 years.

McKee (2004) states that Glacis asserts California's violation of the North American Free Trade Agreement by closing the mine and seeks damages exceeding $50 million. The use of NONFAT is a popular strategy to avoid litigation in U.S. courts. Companies from Canada, Mexico, and the United States are filing complaints under Chapter 11 of the trade agreement. This allows them to present their cases before international arbitration panels with three members instead of national courts. The objective is to challenge laws at different levels—state, provincial, and federal—that are believed to be illegal or discriminatory against foreign businesses. Alan Journey, a partner at Cromwell & Morning in Washington representing Glacis in its dispute with California, emphasizes that these protections provided under Chapter 11 are crucial for ensuring capital flows freely into a country and reflect what U.S. investors expect when doing business abroad. According to a recent scandal involving a drug company located in Richmond, VA where I reside as well, a shareholder has filed a lawsuit against the pharmaceutical company.

Roller (2013) reported that Star Scientific's board of directors faced a lawsuit in Richmond City Circuit Court on July 8. The lawsuit alleged that the board conducted

a deceptive campaign, leading to harm to the company's reputation and a decrease in stock price. Shareholder lawsuits are typically resolved through settlements, and Compare witnessed a substantial decline in stock value after being associated with more than 200 cardiac deaths and being acquired by Well. Considering these factors, it is improbable for shareholders to succeed in this particular lawsuit.

Pharmacy, a well-known pharmaceutical company, had a strong reputation for being caring, ethical, and well-managed. The public praised it for saving and enhancing the lives of numerous individuals. However, behind the scenes, the executives displayed no remorse for overworking indigenous Collegians and causing harm to consumers and employees who even lost their lives. In 2012, Pharmacy reflected on its unethical behavior and realized that corporations still found it too easy to prioritize profit over ethics. They questioned whether changing the rules could create a more ethical business environment. Adhering to ethics is what truly defines an admirable company.

The initial alteration Pharmacy might make is to prioritize integrity, ensuring proper conduct within the organization and expressing gratitude to exceptional employees for their performance. Additionally, Pharmacy should emphasize the importance of consumer safety since a business relies on its customers. Choices made by stakeholders impact not only the company's staff and investors but also other stakeholders. Lastly, Pharmacy must assemble a team that possesses a genuine passion for their work and are motivated not solely by financial incentives but by their belief in making a positive impact, particularly in the realm of pharmaceutical drugs where every decision is crucial.