Bracelet maker accused of false claims
August 23, 2006The manufacturer of the "ionized" Q-Ray bracelet has been accused in Chicago of false advertising for claiming the product acts as a pain reliever.
A Chicago judge is expected to decide this week whether infomercial entrepreneur Andrew Park and his company must pay $87 million and cease claims about the bracelets pain-relieving effects, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday.
A Mayo Clinic study published in 2002 found the bracelets did not actually relieve pain, but gave some wearers a placebo effect, which causes patients to feel better because they expect to.
However, attorneys for Park's QT Inc. claim the cause of the relief doesn't matter, so long as it occurs.
"More than three out of four people got relief from this product," said Michael Ficaro, attorney for QT Inc. "And the other quarter who didn't got their money back ... How in the world does that violate the (false advertising) act?"
The Federal Trade Commission, which brought the suit against QT, has obtained a temporary court order stopping the company from making pain relief claims while the trial is ongoing.
Copyright 2006 by United Press International
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