4 ms·

Amazon is using my grocery purchases to sell me prescription drugs

45 points by sea-gold 2y ago

JohnFen 2y ago
That's creepy as hell. I stopped using Amazon a long while back, but if I hadn't, this kind of thing would absolutely have got me to stop.
willcipriano 2y ago
People who buy specific low cholesterol foods probably also buy drugs that lower cholesterol. The AI notices this correlation and makes a reasonable suggestion, and frankly it's pretty close since this guy was already concerned about it and in talks with his doctor. It might suggest insulin for someone who buys a lot of sugar free candy.
- GrumpyNl 2y ago
  You dont need AI for that.
  - willcipriano 2y ago
    We don't really have AI yet, was just using it for short hand.
cynicalsecurity 2y ago
Medical drugs should not be sold online.
- FireBeyond 2y ago
  The US and New Zealand are also the only countries in the world that allow advertising of prescription medications to consumers. And New Zealand is trying to stop that (and only allowed it in the first place because of US pressure during a trade agreement negotiation).
  - JohnFen 2y ago
    The change in US law that allowed drug companies to advertise prescription medication directly to the public was a terrible thing. It was bad almost immediately, and has just become worse over time. I guess the fact that it happened, and that nobody's even talking about reversing that decision, shows the great power that drug companies have over our government.
- tomcam 2y ago
  Why not?
- _yb2s 2y ago
  They absolutely should be... it is cheaper and saves a lot of time. Going to Dr. appointments online, and ordering prescriptions online is great! They shouldn't be advertised online, because medical decisions shouldn't be made based on advertising.
- svsoc 2y ago
  As someone who is mostly house- and sometimes bed-bound, what do you suggest people like me do?
mrgoldenbrown 2y ago
Remember when Target had to dial back it's personalized advertising because it was creeping out customers? The meme example was a dad getting mad that they sent pregnancy related stuff to his daughter after their algo figured out she was pregnant before he did. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-target-figured-out-a-teen-girl-was-pregnant-before-her-father-did/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-targ...

45 points by sea-gold 2y ago

That's creepy as hell. I stopped using Amazon a long while back, but if I hadn't, this kind of thing would absolutely have got me to stop.

willcipriano 2y ago

People who buy specific low cholesterol foods probably also buy drugs that lower cholesterol. The AI notices this correlation and makes a reasonable suggestion, and frankly it's pretty close since this guy was already concerned about it and in talks with his doctor. It might suggest insulin for someone who buys a lot of sugar free candy.

GrumpyNl 2y ago
You dont need AI for that.
- willcipriano 2y ago
  We don't really have AI yet, was just using it for short hand.

cynicalsecurity 2y ago

Medical drugs should not be sold online.

FireBeyond 2y ago
The US and New Zealand are also the only countries in the world that allow advertising of prescription medications to consumers. And New Zealand is trying to stop that (and only allowed it in the first place because of US pressure during a trade agreement negotiation).
- JohnFen 2y ago
  The change in US law that allowed drug companies to advertise prescription medication directly to the public was a terrible thing. It was bad almost immediately, and has just become worse over time. I guess the fact that it happened, and that nobody's even talking about reversing that decision, shows the great power that drug companies have over our government.
tomcam 2y ago
Why not?
_yb2s 2y ago
They absolutely should be... it is cheaper and saves a lot of time. Going to Dr. appointments online, and ordering prescriptions online is great! They shouldn't be advertised online, because medical decisions shouldn't be made based on advertising.
svsoc 2y ago
As someone who is mostly house- and sometimes bed-bound, what do you suggest people like me do?

mrgoldenbrown 2y ago

Remember when Target had to dial back it's personalized advertising because it was creeping out customers? The meme example was a dad getting mad that they sent pregnancy related stuff to his daughter after their algo figured out she was pregnant before he did. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-target-figured-out-a-teen-girl-was-pregnant-before-her-father-did/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-targ...