Drug side effects

Abelson: The official website for the drug Olanzapine probably didn’t mention the fact it might cause diabetic symptoms in patients. Another website obviously did. Commercials on TV now are required to mention possible side effects. Should drug companies be required to come clean about situations like the one with Eli Lilly’s Olanzapine in their commercial websites? Why or why not?

I think its important for drug companies to address issues about side effects & medical conditions to their patients as much as possible. Many patients don't take the time to research a drug or its effects or take the time to read through all of the information, and while that is the responsibility of the patient, it is important to keep their patients safe by highlighting some of the more serious issues. I think it makes a drug and the drug company more credible when they address mistakes formally on their website. When companies just ignore the issues it seems as if they are covering something up or not as worried about their patients. For example, the birth control Yaz had some problems with their side effects and they cleared up the information on their commercial. This made people aware of the issues and it makes the drug safer for everybody using it.