State legislatures in 2008 continued to be very active on issues relating to conflicts of interest in the medical professions, evidence-based prescribing, pharmaceutical marketing and data mining of prescription information. According to data compiled by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and by the National Legislative Association on Prescription Drug Prices (NLARx), during 2008 at least 25 states either proposed new legislation or acted on bills filed in 2007 and carried over relating to: requiring marketing disclosures by drug manufacturers, banning gifts and payments to doctors, regulating direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs by pharmaceutical companies, or prohibiting prescription information from being sold for commercial purposes.

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