The Federal Trade Commission announced that it sent thirty-five more warning letters to marketers, telling them to stop making unsubstantiated claims that their products and therapies can treat or prevent COVID-19. This is the sixth round of warning letters that the FTC has sent -- bringing the total number of FTC warning letters to more than 160.
The FTC sent letters to companies promoting IV and ozone therapies, immunity boosting injections, stem cell treatments, electromagnetic field blocking patches, essential oils, homeopathic treatments, and vitamins, supplements, silver, and Chinese herbal treatments. In the letters, the FTC states that one or more of the efficacy claims made by the marketers are unsubstantiated because they are not supported by scientific evidence.
The FTC challenged claims that appeared on a variety of media, including company websites, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and affiliate marketing. For example, in a letter to the Nepute Wellness Center, the FTC challenged claims that the company made on a Facebook Live video. The company claimed, "We got shut down because we talked about how in China they were using high-dose vitamin C IVs to help people get better with COVID-19. Guess what. Yesterday, guess what the headline news was . . . . ‘Hospitals in New York are treating patients that have COVID-19 with high-dose vitamin C.’ Boom!"
The FTC's letters advise the recipients to immediately stop making all claims that their products can treat or cure COVID-19, and to notify the FTC within forty-eight hours about the specific actions they have taken to address the agency’s concerns.
"Like the dozens of other warning letters the FTC has sent, these letters remind businesses that no study is currently known to exist that substantiates their COVID-19 claims" -- FTC Senior Attorney Lesley Fair
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