Cold “remedy” maker to pay $7 million to settle health-claims suit

The maker of the top-selling Airborne cough and cold supplements has agreed to stop claiming its products prevent or treat colds, sore throats and allergies and to pay $7 million to settle a lawsuit filed by 33 states and the District of Columbia.

In its complaint, Washington state alleged the company, Airborne Health, Inc., engaged “in unfair and deceptive acts or practices in connection with the advertising, marketing, and sale of their line of dietary supplements.”

The popular products can be found on the shelves of such Seattle retail outlets as Walgreens, CVS, Albertson’s, Trader Joe’s, Walmart, and Costco.

Airborne described the dietary supplement as a “Cold Buster” and a “Cold Remedy” that was ”Developed by a school teacher who was sick of catching colds in class and on airplanes”.

Company advertisements said Airborne products contained “…immune-boosting formula that helps your body fight germs and viruses.”

According to the lawsuit, those claims were made “without competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate them” as required by the Consumer Protection Act.

Earlier this year, the company agreed to pay a $23 million to settle a consumer class action lawsuit based on similar complaints as well as a suit filed by the Federal Trade Commission.

Washington state will receive about $150,000 from the $7-million settlement, which resolves allegations that Airborne Health, Inc. and its founders and current owners.

In agreeing to make the settlement, the company did not admit to any wrongdoing. The company has already agreed to stop making the claims cited in the lawsuit.

On its website, the company now claims its products are designed “to support your immune system” but no longer claims they can prevent or treat colds, sore throats or allergies.

To learn more:

• Read the Washington State Attorney General’s Office press release about the settlement.
• Read a report Do popular remedies work? on Airborne Health’s products and other dietary supplements prepared by the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
• Visit Airborne Health’s website, which has a statement on the settlement.

Tags: Airborne, Airborne Health, Supplements, Vitamins & Supplements

Category: Allergies, Alternative Medicine, Drugs & Medicines, Immune System, Infections, Lungs & Breathing, Vitamins & Supplements