Walgreens coughs up nearly $6 mil. to settle with FTC
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
Walgreens will pay nearly $6 million to settle charges with the Federal Trade Commission that the pharmacy chain deceptively advertised Wal-Born, a supplement similar to Airborne cold-and-flu products, the FTC said in a March 23 release. FTC says Walgreens advertised the product in newspaper circulars and online with " baseless claims" the supplements could prevent colds, fight germs and boost the immune system. Further, a federal court approved a settlement of $565,000 for Wal-Born manufacturer Improvita Health Products' two principal officers. FTC says Walgreens sold the supplements and marketed them with their similarities to Airborne, which FTC charged with deceptive advertising and settled in 2008 (1"The Tan Sheet" April 18, 2008). FTC's suit against Improvita is still being litigated. Improvita manufactured similar store-brand products for Rite Aid, which the FTC settled cases with in 2009