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Consumer Health Digest #17-14
April 2, 2017

Consumer Health Digest is a free weekly e-mail newsletter edited by Stephen Barrett, M.D
http://www.quackwatch.org/10Bio/bio.html
., with help from William M. London, Ed.D., M.P.H
http://www.calstatela.edu/faculty/william-m-london
It summarizes scientific reports; legislative developments; enforcement actions; news reports; Web site evaluations; recommended and nonrecommended books; and other information relevant to consumer protection and consumer decision-making. Its primary focus is on health, but occasionally it includes non-health scams and practical tips.

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Be wary of online ticket scalping

Quackwatch has posted an article about the dark side of the ticket resale marketplace.
[Barrett S. Don't get misled by online ticket resellers
http://www.quackwatch.org/04ConsumerEducation/tickets.html
Quackwatch, April 2, 2017]
Many resellers use URLs that are similar to box-office sites and get top search engine placements with paid ads. On most reseller sites, most prices are higher than the original ticket prices; and the seats you get may differ from what you expect. In some cases, the tickets will be counterfeit or will never get delivered. It is safest to deal with the official venue Web site. Official sites that do not sell tickets directly will either link to an online service agency (such as Ticketmaster) and/or provide a phone number to call for reservations. The Quackwatch article advises:

If you are looking for tickets to an event and have no reason to think they are scarce, make sure you deal only with official sites and do not, under any circumstances, do business with a reseller.
If you still want to deal with a reseller, make sure you understand that any displayed prices are likely to be higher than the original price.
If a Better Business Bureau report on the company exists, read the complaints.

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“Holistic" M.D. placed on probation

Dan O. Harper, M.D., who operates Be Well Associates
http://www.drdanharper.com/
in Solana Beach, California, signed a consent agreement
http://www.casewatch.org/board/med/harper/order_2017.pdf
under which he was placed on three years' probation during which he is required to take continuing education courses in ethics and record-keeping and either have a practice monitor or complete a clinical enhancement program. In 2015, he was charged with negligence and failure to keep adequate records in connection with treating a patient.

The accusation
http://www.casewatch.org/board/med/harper/accusation.shtml

expressed concerns about his use of

homeopathic "energy water,"
craniosacral therapy,
healing touch,
ozone therapy,
"cold" red laser treatment,
frequency specific microcurrent (FSM), and
[applied] kinesiology.

The consent agreement did not specify that he should stop these dubious practices, so it is not clear what effect it will have. Harper's "consent for treatment" form
http://www.casewatch.org/board/med/harper/np_form.pdf
includes these provisions:

"I am consulting with Dr. Harper solely for the reasons concerning my own health. I am not consulting Dr. Harper in order to provide any information to any enforcement, regulatory, or investigative agency of any kind.

I release and forever discharge Dr. Dan Harper and his heirs, successors, and administrators from any and all claims, loss, damages, and injuries, present and future, in any manner arising out of my consultations with him. This release covers all damages, whether or not contemplated at the present time and includes situations undeveloped and unknown at the present time, as well as those now known."

###
Australian blogger convicted of lying about brain tumor

A federal court judge has concluded that 25-year-old Belle Gibson lacked a rational or reasonable basis to believe she had cancer when she made public claims about it to promote her book and apps.

Gibson's book, The Whole Pantry, claimed:

(a) she was diagnosed with brain cancer and told she would die within four months,

(b) she had some standard treatment but then embarked on a "quest" to heal herself through "nutrition and holistic medicine,"

(c) diet and natural treatments had extended her life.

The criminal case against Gibson was initiated by Consumer Affairs Victoria. Consumer Affairs Victoria also obtained enforceable undertaking
http://www.casewatch.org/foreign/gibson/penguin_undertaking.pdf
in which the book's publisher (Penguin Australia Pty Ltd) acknowledged that statements in the book were false and agreed to donate AUS$30,000 to the Victorian Consumer Fund. Press reports state that Gibson took in more than AUS$1 million from her book and app.

[Brown V, Sullivan R. Judgment in Belle Gibson vs. Consumer Affairs Victoria case handed down
http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/news-life/judgement-in-belle-gibson-vs-consumer-affairs-victoria-case-to-be-handed-down/news-story/187169614b483a5cede9f3380837e4d6
News.com.au, March 16, 2017]

###

Continuing request for help from Dr. Barrett

In June 2010, Doctor's Data, Inc. sued Dr. Barrett because it didn’t like what he wrote about its urine toxic metals test on Quackwatch and in this newsletter. The events leading up to the suit are described at

http://www.quackwatch.org/14Legal/dd_suit.html

About half of the counts were dismissed in 2011, and most of the rest were dismissed last year.

The suit is scheduled to be tried in July 2017.

Dr. Barrett expects to prevail completely, but the proceedings have cost him hundreds of thousands of dollars so far. Even small donations, if sent by enough subscribers to this newsletter, will be very helpful. Contributions can be made by mail or through
http://www.quackwatch.org/00AboutQuackwatch/donations.html


###
Other issues of the Digest are accessible

through
http://www.ncahf.org/digest17/index.html

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=================================

Stephen Barrett, M.D.
Consumer Advocate
287 Fearrington Post
Pittsboro, NC 27312

Telephone: (919) 533-6009

http://www.quackwatch.org (health fraud and quackery)

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