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The websites can appear legitimate with customer service and reviews

October 4, 2024
There's been a spike in illegal online pharmacies selling fake pills for Oxycodone, Adderral and Xanax and other drugs that actuallycontain the deadly drugs fentanyland methamphetamine, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency said Friday.

The DEA said the websites targeting Americans are often foreign based, including in India and the Dominican Republic, and go to lengths to look real by advertising 24-hour customer service, online reviews, safety facts,offering discounts and more.

"Many of these sites purport to be legitimate, U.S. based or FDA approved sites, but are actually working with drug traffickers to fulfill online orders with fake pills," the DEA said.

One victim died after taking one pill of whatshe believed and what appeared to be oxycodone, but turned out to be a fake pill of filler and fentanyl, the DEA said.

"These companies operate illegally, deliberately deceiving American customers into believing they are purchasing safe, regulated medications when they are actually selling fake, counterfeit pills made with fentanyl or methamphetamine," the DEA added."Fake medications can lead to serious health risks, including harmful side effects, ineffective treatment, and even death."

On Sept. 30, the U.S. Attorney General charged 18 defendantsin India, the Dominican Republic and the U.S. who were part of an online networkthat sold millions of dangerous fake pills laced with fentanyland methamphetamine.

Authorities have recently shut down nine websites, including curecog.com, pharmacystoreonline.com and careonlinestore.com.

How to avoid buying fake, deadlydrugs

The DEA said it is difficult to determine if an online pharmacy is legitimate, but there aresigns to look out for:

• Websites selling drugs without a prescription.
• Much cheaper prices than usual.
• Prices are listed in a foreign currency.
• No proof of a valid pharmacy state license or DEA registration.
• Medicine arrives in broken, damaged packaging in a foreign language.
• Medicine doesn't have expiration date or is expired.
• Medicine looks different than what you have received in the past from a pharmacist.

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The edibles contain a mixture of mushrooms and other ingredients

October 4, 2024
A third person has died in an outbreak traced to Diamond Shruumz brand edibles. There have been 175 confirmed illnesses across 33 states so far,according to the Food and Drug Administration.

All of the patients had eaten Diamond Shruumz brand chocolate bars, cones or gummies.

Reported symptoms have included seizures, agitation, involuntary muscle contractions, loss of consciousness, confusion, and sleepiness, nausea and vomiting, abnormal heart rates and hyper/hypotension.

The manufacturer, Prophet Premium Brands, said testing of some of the products showed higher than normal amounts of muscimol.

Muscimol is the principal psychoactive constituent of the Amanita muscaria mushroom, commonly known as the fly agaric. It's a potent psychoactive substance with sedative-hypnotic, depressant, and hallucinogenic effects.

About muscimol

Muscimol can be harmful to humans. Here's why:

• Unpredictable effects: The effects of muscimol can vary significantly from person to person and even from one experience to the next. This unpredictability makes it difficult to dose accurately and increases the risk of adverse reactions.
  

• Toxicity: While muscimol itself has relatively low toxicity, it's often found alongside ibotenic acid in Amanita muscaria mushrooms. Ibotenic acid is a neurotoxin that can cause a range of unpleasant effects, including nausea, vomiting, confusion, and seizures.
  

• Potential for overdose: Although rare, overdose on muscimol is possible, especially when consuming Amanita muscaria mushrooms in their raw or unprocessed form. Overdose can lead to severe central nervous system depression, respiratory distress, and even coma.
  

• Long-term effects: The long-term effects of muscimol use are not well-studied, but there's concern that chronic exposure could lead to neurological problems or other health issues.
  

The legal status of muscimol varies by jurisdiction. In some places, it may be illegal to possess or consume Amanita muscaria mushrooms or muscimol extracts.

All flavors recalled; do not eat!

The manufacturer has recalled all flavors and types of Diamond Shruumz. However, the FDA said it has found that the edibles are still available in some stores and online outlets.

Consumers should not purchase or consume any Diamond Shruumz brand products. If you have seen a store continue selling recalled Diamond Shruumz-brand products, you can report this information to the FDA.

Consumers are urged to check their homes for the recalled products and throw them away if they have them on hand.

Anyone experiencing adverse reactions after consuming recalled products is urged to seek medical attention immediately, especially if they have trouble breathing.

The New Jersey Poison Center based at Rutgers University has reported even more illnesses than the FDA has recorded.

Poison centers nationwide have received 198 reports of exposure, including 108 cases with more severe illness. Of the 108 cases with more severe illness, 91 sought medical attention, according to the center at Rutgers.




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Vons, Safeway, Albertsons stores had their finger on the scale, suit alleged

October 4, 2024
Grocery titan Albertsonshas been painting a rosy picture of how much money consumers will save if its proposed merger with Kroger is approved but a just-settled lawsuit isn't helping its argument.

The company agreed to pay $3.9 million to resolve a complaint that it ripped off customers at hundreds of its Vons, Safeway and Albertsons stores in California.

According to the complaint, groceries sold by Albertsons Cos. including produce, meats, baked goods and other items had less product in the package than indicated on the label. The company also is accused of charging customers prices higher than its lowest advertised price.

False advertising preys on consumers, who are already facing rising costs, and unfairly disadvantages companies that play by the rules, District Attorney George Gascn said. This kind of corporate conduct is especially egregious when it comes to essential groceries, as Californians rely on accurate advertised prices to budget food for their families.

Some items sold by weight such as produce, meats, baked goods and other items had less product in the package than was displayed on the package label. For those items, a grocer may only charge for the products actual weight; the packaging is not included in the overall weight.

LADAs Consumer Protection Division, in partnership with the consumer protection units of the district attorneys offices of Marin, Alameda, Sonoma, Riverside, San Diego, and Ventura counties, investigated and prosecuted this matter. The case was filed in Marin County Superior Court.

Price accuracy

The judgement requires the grocers to implement a Price Accuracy Program, including a Price Accuracy Guarantee that allows a consumer to be compensated up to $5 if they are overcharged. The program is an incentive to encourage consumers to report false advertising to the store as soon as it is discovered.

The company did not admit wrongdoing. It said ithas taken steps to correct the violations.

Albertsons Companies, Safeway Inc., and The Vons Companies operate 589 stores in California.

Merger challenged

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and eight states have sued to block the merger between Kroger and Albertsons. The case is being heard in federal court in Portland, Ore. .

The two supermarket companies say the merger will streamline operations and lower prices. In fact, Kroger has promised the merger would allow the combined companies to cut grocery prices by $1 billion.

Consumer advocates are highly skeptical. And while arguments are being made in the courtroom, plenty of arguments are being voiced outside the chamber. And not all concerns are about prices.

This merger will leave Californians with fewer choices over where to shop and for workers in this industry, where to work, said California Attorney General Rob Bonta. We are in court today to prevent this unlawful attempt by Kroger and Albertsons to merge their operations and reduce competition in the marketplace.


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Insurance policyholders have a right to quick and full payment of claims

October 4, 2024
As homeowners struggle to recover from Hurricane Helene, most will turn to their homeowners and flood insurance for relief. TheConsumer Federation of America (CFA) and United Policyholders are sharingresources and tips to help consumers get their wind and flood insurance claims paid quickly, fully, and fairly.

Policyholders are entitled to receive claims payments to the full extent of their insurance policies. Given the nature of this hurricane, it is especially important that consumers whose homes have been damaged due to wind-driven and falling rain (as opposed to flooding) collect all funds available through their home insurance policies, and those with flood insurance get paid promptly and in full.

This point always causes confusion, so it's worth repeating:

• Homeowners insurance covers damage from wind, including wind-driven water;
• Flood insurance covers flooding from storm surge and other rising water, like that from rivers.

State and federal officials need to hold home and flood insurance companies accountable and make sure consumers are treated fairly.

Consumers who have been devastated by Helene have every right to get quick and full payments from their home and flood insurance policies, said Douglas Heller, CFAs Director of Insurance. They have paid insurance premiums all along so that when disaster strikes as it has, they have the resources to repair and rebuild their homes and communities and their lives as quickly as possible.

If your home or business has been damaged, take photos of the damage, get a complete and current copy of your home, auto (and flood) policies and keep notes on all conversations with insurance company representatives and repair professionals said Amy Bach, Executive Director of United Policyholders. If you are being mistreated, learn your rights and speak up! It is critical to be pro-active in the insurance claim process.

Visit UPs Hurricane Helene Roadmap to Recovery library for more info and help at www.uphelp.org/helene.

Insured or not?

Many Helene victims will find themselves underinsured or even uninsured. Getting independent expert opinions on the cause and extent of damage is important.

While home insurance policies cover rain and wind damage from storms, damage from flooding is typically excluded. Most flood policies are sold by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), butonly a small percentage of Americans carry flood insurance.

In the past, insurance companies have tried to shirk their responsibility after storms where there were both covered damage and flood damage. For example, State Farm paid a $100 million settlement related to allegations that it improperly denied Hurricane Katrina claims or shifted responsibility to the NFIP by arguing that damage came from flooding instead of the hurricane.

And a recent investigation by CBS found that after Hurricane Ian, insurance companies changed adjusters estimates to shortchange impacted homeowners; this should not happen again.

CFA and United Policyholders urge Insurance Commissioners in all impacted states to monitor insurer claim handling and consumer complaints and regulate accordingly.

What to do

Insured property owners with damaged property should take the following steps:

1. Contact your insurance company and report your claim as quickly as possible. Depending on what caused the damage to your home, your claim may be covered by homeowners insurance or flood insurance, or both.
2. Document the damage in photos and videos as thoroughly as possible, but only to the extent that it is safe to do so. Try to keep damaged items from being removed before they have been photo-documented.
3. Keep a daily journal, noting every time you talk or interact with insurance company adjusters, repair professionals, and anyone else you are considering hiring. Note the name, date and time of the contact.
4. Keep receipts for every cost you incur. This includes hotel and food costs if you evacuate, any alternative living arrangement costs if you cannot return to your homes, and any costs for making initial repairs to your home to prevent further damage. This may be covered under your homeowners insurance policy or your private flood insurance policy. Temporary living expenses are not covered under National Flood Insurance Program policies.
5. Check reference and license status before you agree to hire or assign any of your insurance benefits to any professional. Post-disaster scams are unfortunately quite common. Local help is preferable but it is not available, be careful and vet out-of-the-area pros before you sign on the dotted line.
6. Contact your Insurance Department and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA, for flood insurance) if you encounter problems.

Contact info

Florida Office of Insurance Regulation
850-413-3140
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
File a complaint:https://apps.fldfs.com/eService/Default.aspx

Georgia Office of the Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner
404-656-2070 or 800-656-2298
cThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
File a complaint:https://oci.georgia.gov/file-consumer-insurance-complaint

North Carolina Department of Insurance
855-408-1212
File a complaint:https://www.ncdoi.gov/contactscomplaints/assistance-or-file-complaint

South Carolina Department of Insurance
803-737-6160
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
File a complaint:https://sbs.naic.org/solar-web/pages/public/onlineComplaintForm/onlineComplaintForm.jsf?state=SC&dswid=1148

Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance
615-741-2241
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
File a complaint:https://sbs.naic.org/solar-web/pages/public/onlineComplaintForm/onlineComplaintForm.jsf?state=tn&dswid=5372

Federal Emergency Management Agency
1-800-427-4661
500 C St SW, Washington, DC 20024
https://www.fema.gov/about/contact






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The lawsuit claims there is a conspiracy to inflate prices that consumers pay

October 4, 2024

The state of Texas has filed a lawsuit against drug companies that produce insulin and pharmacy benefit managers (PBM), claiming there is a conspiracy to keep insulin prices high.

The suit claims the defendants including Eli Lilly, Express Scripts and CVS Pharmacy, among others have artificially and willingly raised insulin prices and then paid PBMs to include the insulin products in their standard offerings.

The suit charges the drug companies were granted preferred status even though their insulin prices are higher than other drugs. According to the complaint, these synthetic insulin drugs cost the manufacturers less than $2 to produce and were originally priced at $20 when released in the late 1990s, but now range between $300 and $700.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says the manufacturers named in the lawsuit have increased the prices in violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

This is a disturbing conspiracy by which pharmaceutical companies were intentionally and artificially inflating the price of insulin, Paxton said. Big Pharma insulin manufacturers and PBMs worked together to take advantage of diabetes patients and drive prices as high as they could. These companies acted illegally and unethically to enrich themselves, and we will hold them accountable.

The FTC has also filed a lawsuit

The Texas suit follows a similar complaint by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which last month sued the three largest prescription drug benefit managers for allegedly driving up insulin prices through anticompetitive and unfair rebating practices, impaired patients access to lower list price products, and shifted the cost of high insulin list prices to vulnerable patients.

The FTC charged Caremark Rx, Express Scripts (ESI), and OptumRx and their affiliated group purchasing organizations (GPOs) abused their economic power by rigging pharmaceutical supply chain competition in their favor. As a result, the suit says, patients must pay more for life-saving medication.

When we say life-saving medication, thats no exaggeration. According to the American Diabetes Association, diabetes was a virtual death sentence before insulin was discovered in 1921. In 1921, a young surgeon named Frederick Banting and his assistant Charles Best figured out how to remove insulin from a dogs pancreas.

The first synthetic human insulin was produced in 1978 using E. coli bacteria to produce it. Eli Lilly went on in 1982 to sell the first commercially available biosynthetic human insulin under the brand name Humulin.


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