Walmart, the United States’ largest retailer, has been sued for medical fraud. The suit, filed by the Center for Inquiry (CFI) in the District of Columbia, asserts that Walmart is “committing wide-scale consumer fraud and endangering the health of its customers through its sale and marketing of homeopathic medicines.”1 CFI brought a similar suit against CVS, the nation’s largest drug retailer, in 2018.
CFI’s Vice President and General Counsel, Nick Little, argues that:
“Walmart sells homeopathics right alongside real medicines, in the same sections in its stores, under the same signs. Searches on its website for cold and flu remedies or teething products for infants yield pages full of homeopathic junk products. It’s an incredible betrayal of customers’ trust and an abuse of Walmart’s titanic retail power.”1
A spokesman for Walmart responded by saying:
“We want to be the most trusted retailer, and we look to our suppliers to provide products that meet all applicable laws, including labeling laws. Our Equate private label homeopathic products are designed to include information directly stating that the claims are not based on accepted medical evidence and have not been evaluated by the FDA. We take allegations like these seriously and will respond as appropriate with the court.”1
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Homeopathic medicine (also known as homeopathy) works under the assumption that the body can cure itself, and those that use homeopathy trust that natural substances promote natural healing. The treatment protocol uses minerals, plants or animals and is dispensed as tablets, creams, oils and gels. Most products are self-prescribed and self-administered for conditions like allergies, migraines, pain and the common cold.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health estimates homeopathic products were used by 5 million adults and 1 million children within the past year.
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Alternative treatments, including homeopathy, have long been disputed as a substitute to evidence-based medicine. CFI maintains in this case that Walmart deliberately displayed homeopathy remedies (for stress relief, colds and flu) as equal alternatives to customers, both in store and online. CFI is not asking to have homeopathic items removed from the stores, but rather wants to make sure Walmart’s products are labeled “in an honest manner for consumers.”
Mr. Little contends:
“Walmart can’t claim it doesn’t know that homeopathy is snake oil, because it runs its own enormous pharmacy business and make its own homeopathic products. So whether it’s a scientifically proven remedy like aspirin or flatly denounced junk like homeopathic teething caplets for babies, Walmart sells all of it under its in-house ‘Equate’ branding. It’s all the same to Walmart.”1
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have taken no significant steps to clamp down homeopathy, despite the NIH’s determination “that there is little evidence to support that homeopathy may be an effective treatment for any mental or physical health problems.”1
However, on March 14, 2019 the FDA issued warnings to five makers of homeopathic products for putting “consumers at risk with significant violations of manufacturing quality standards.”
But most experts contend these actions are merely the agencies making an appearance at curtailing the products – as most homeopathic and nutraceutical products are never reviewed for safety or efficacy by government agencies.1
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Even with CFI’s pleas for tougher regulation of homeopathic products, federal agencies have done very little so far in response. CFI has had influence, however, in recent years as the FTC announced that:
“marketing of homeopathic products for specific diseases and symptoms is only permissible if consumers are made explicitly aware that 1) there is no scientific evidence that the product works, and 2) the product’s claims are based only on theories of homeopathy from the 1700s that are not accepted by most modern medical experts.”1
The FTC declared that homeopathic products would be held to the same standards as those for evidence-based drugs making related claims. It also stated (with no plan in place for enforcement) that there must be competent and reliable scientific evidence in place for homeopathic companies to make health-related claims.
The FDA also proposed, in December 2017, a new “risk-based” enforcement proposal, to create a platform for enhanced scrutiny of homeopathic products that posed a significant risk to susceptible groups of people.
Sure (according to groups like CFI), consumers might lose money on “treatments” that may not be proven to work, and there is a small chance of worsening health. Nonetheless, the “snake oil” cures of the world have always been around. In fact, since homeopathy exploded in popularity in Germany 200 years ago, it has been grounded in two fundamental theories:
- The notion that like cures like. What this means is that an ailment can be cured by a substance that produces similar symptoms in healthy people
- The notion that the lower the dose of medication, the greater the effectiveness. This leads to many homeopathic products being diluted by water or other means1
These two theories have always been attractive to humans – the knowledge that nature can cure.
Many say the likelihood of CFI winning its lawsuit is small. Homeopathic medicines are passionately rooted in our history, and if nothing else, the filing of the lawsuit has enhanced the awareness of their potential for healing.
