Supreme Court Finds Vermont Statute Restricting Pharmaceutical Marketing Unconstitutional Under the First Amendment
July 7, 2011
On June 23, 2011, in Sorell v. IMS Health Inc., the Court invalidated under the First Amendment a Vermont statute prohibiting pharmaceutical manufacturers from marketing their products to doctors by using prescriber-specific pharmacy records. Affirming the Second Circuit Court of Appeals with a 6-3 majority, the Court held that Vt. Stat. Ann., Tit. 18, §4631(d) unconstitutionally burdened the speech of pharmaceutical marketers and data miners without adequate justification.
