Dr. Richard A. Friedman, a professor of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College, has penned an op-ed piece in the New York Times in which he calls out his profession for prescribing expensive brand medications over older, but equally effective and far less costly alternatives.

Writes Friedman:

Recently, one of my residents told me about a patient with bipolar disorder whose psychiatrist had prescribed an exotic cocktail of drugs — a sedative, a new mood stabilizer and the latest antipsychotic medication.

I was puzzled — not by her case, which the resident described as textbook manic depression, but by what was left out. This patient, it seems, was never offered lithium, the single most effective treatment for bipolar disorder…

Never mind that lithium has proved its safety and efficacy over decades of use; it’s passé — eclipsed by all the new and sexy blockbuster drugs … Lithium is cheap and unpatented, so drug companies have little interest in it. Instead, they have made a new generation of mood stabilizers, some more tolerable than lithium, but none more effective.

So, why would doctors prescribe pricier — and less proven — brand medications? Friedman says they have been seduced, and even pressured, by drug company marketing:

Doctors and patients alike are inundated by drug company marketing. The companies like to say they are interested in educating the public and physicians about various illnesses, though I have yet to meet a single patient who learned anything informative about any disease from an advertisement.

Instead, I have seen scores of patients in my office, eager to get the latest antidepressant or mood stabilizer that promised them tranquility on their TV screens. No wonder: drug company spending on consumer advertising skyrocketed 330 percent from 1996 to 2005…

If you want to save on your prescription drug bill, be sure to ask your doctor if there is a less-expensive medication to treat your condition. In most cases, your physician doesn’t even factor a drug’s cost into his or her decisions — unless you specifically bring it up.

Pfizer announced today that it will provide approximately 70 of its most widely used prescription drugs, including Lipitor, Celebrex, Lyrica and Viagra, for free to people who have lost their jobs and health insurance since January 1, 2009.

Consumers can call 866-706-2400 to sign up for the program, which will provide free medications for up to a year. You can only sign up if you have already been taking the medication for at least three months.

Here’s video of an AP story on the Pfizer program: