FTC Settles Internet Fraud Charges By David Ho Associated Press Writer Thursday, June 14, 2001; 3:49 p.m. EDT
WASHINGTON –– The Federal Trade Commission has settled fraud charges against five companies that used the Internet to sell miracle cures for everything from AIDS to cancer. The companies must stop their false advertising and, in some cases, repay their customers and pay fines to the government, the FTC said Thursday. A sixth company has agreed to stop making unsupported claims while the case against it is pending. The release of results from the FTC's "Operation Cure.All" is the agency's first major announcement since Timothy J. Muris became its chairman this month. "Today's Internet is a vital health care resource," Muris said, noting that 90 million Americans go to Web sites for health information. "Unfortunately, the Internet is also a convenient medium for those who prey on sick and vulnerable consumers." Muris said at a press conference that the FTC would increase its efforts to combat Internet health fraud, but did not give specifics. Muris, a former law professor at George Mason University, headed the FTC's consumer protection and competition divisions during the early 1980s. The FTC said the targeted companies offered an array of dietary supplements and medical devices including: –A device that delivered mild electric current to kill parasites allegedly responsible for diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer's. –Shark cartilage, colloidal silver and the hormone DHEA – all touted as cures for numerous ailments. –Herbal cures costing hundreds of dollars and marketed as alternatives for surgery, radiation treatments or chemotherapy. According to the FTC, an advertisement from Western Herb and Dietary Products Inc. read: "After curing your cancer with this recipe it cannot come back. ... But if you do not wish to make your doctor angry you could follow her or his wishes, too. Be careful not to lose any vital anatomical parts in surgery though, because you may need them later when you are healthy!" Western Herb, based in Blaine, Wash., markets various herbal products and electric "zapper" units to treat diseases. The FTC said it filed charges against that company on June 4 in U.S. District Court in Seattle and the company agreed Wednesday to stop making unsupported claims while the case is pending. Attorneys for the company did not immediately return calls seeking comment. Two companies – Panda Herbal International of Bensalem, Pa., and ForMor Inc. of Conway, Ark. – marketed the herb St. John's wort as a safe treatment for illnesses including HIV and AIDS. The FTC said there is not enough evidence to support that claim and that the herb is known to interfere with HIV/AIDS medications. Pregnant women should also avoid the herb, the agency said. "It's bad enough when someone, with little or no evidence, touts unproven remedies to vulnerable populations," said Walter H. Carr, a chairman with the National AIDS Health Fraud Task Force Network. "It's even more frightening when they do so despite – and without so much as a mention of – emerging risks that those remedies pose to the very people to whom they are pitching their sale." Both companies will now have to include with their advertising a warning about drug interactions. The other companies that agreed to settle charges are Aaron Co. of Palm Bay, Fla.; Jaguar Enterprises of Mesquite, Texas; and MaxCell BioScience, also known as Oasis Wellness Network, of Broomfield, Colo., which also must pay the FTC $150,000. By agreeing to settle, none of the companies admitted violating any law. The FTC warns that consumers should beware of panaceas and be particularly wary of terms like "scientific breakthrough," "miraculous cure," "exclusive product," "secret ingredient" or "ancient remedy." ––– On the Net: FTC: http://www.ftc.gov -- The silver-list is a moderated forum for discussion of colloidal silver. To join or quit silver-list or silver-digest send an e-mail message to: [email protected] -or- [email protected] with the word subscribe or unsubscribe in the SUBJECT line. To post, address your message to: [email protected] Silver-list archive: http://escribe.com/health/thesilverlist/index.html List maintainer: Mike Devour <[email protected]>
