On 5 July 2018 I complained to the TGA about the promotion of Pharmacare Laboratories Ease-a-cold products (TGA reference AL-B81GN1V3/2018).
The TGA have now published the outcome of this complaint noting that in all cases that a breach was found, compliance was achieved by formal contact without any other action required.
The attached document contains screenshots (taken today) of promotion from the sites complained about. I argue they show that:
- Compliance has not been achieved in any of these sites. The name of the product, “Ease-a-cold”, the claims, “Scientifically/Specifically formulated to help shorten a cold” and “reduce the severity of 31 different symptoms of a cold on your daily life”, are misleading, deceptive and lack evidence to substantiate them.
- The TGA has not addressed additional code breaches that were alleged, e.g. 4(1)(b), & 4(2)(a);
- The rationale for some breaches suggested by the TGA are unclear, e.g. 42DL(12), 22(5)and 42DLB(4);
- It is also unclear why the TGA found no Code breach for the Chemist Warehouse and Epharmacy web sites (illustrated).
- Public Summary Documents of several Ease‐a‐cold products continue to make claims that appear to breach the Code, e.g. 194706, 232713.
I have requested a meeting with the TGA to discuss these concerns.
by 
Ken, as we all know, all of these type of claims, unsupported by evidence base, are rampant and continue on and on!
The “catch-all” one that they all use in advertising these days, including a wide range of “health” products, is “clinically proven”.
After all, we’re all, justifiably, a bit more circumspect than that in describing the efficacy of all of our marketed prescription pharmaceuticals, when we have the research material to hand, let alone using that throwaway line for the “fringe” medicines!!
But they continue to use that advertising slogan with impunity!
Go figure!!