FTC Sends Warning Letters to 25 Health Plan Marketers Over Four Types of Deceptive Claims
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on October 29 that its staff are sending warning letters to 25 companies that market healthcare plans or generate sales leads for them, cautioning against deceptive claims as health coverage open enrollment gets under way.
The letters flag four types of claims: misrepresenting a plan’s benefits or limitations, presenting a limited-benefit plan or medical discount program as comprehensive health insurance, misrepresenting what a plan costs, and falsely promising free offers, cash rewards, rebates or other enrollment incentives.
The letters cover marketers of Affordable Care Act Marketplace plans as well as limited indemnity plans and medical discount programs. The FTC said the letters do not allege wrongdoing by any recipient, did not name the companies, and that additional letters will be sent on a rolling basis.
“Open enrollment is not an invitation to misrepresent what their plans actually cover,” Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in the release. Violations of the telemarketing and impersonation rules can carry civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation, the agency said, and consumers who believe they were misled can report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
(Source: Federal Trade Commission)
Source: Federal Trade Commission
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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