LANSING, Mich. — Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is calling on a West Michigan business to retract false claims after she says the owner made claims about a product’s ability to prevent COVID-19.
The attorney general’s office says they received a complaint after Stephanie Davison appeared on a West Michigan lifestyle show to promote Skin Envy’s ipamorelin/sermorelin injections.
Davison is on the TLC reality show 90 Day Fiancé and is the principal of Skin Envy, LLC, which operates non-surgical weight-loss centers in Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids.
According to the attorney general’s office, Davison claimed during a televised segment that the injections prevented COVID-19 and boost the immune system. Nessel says Davison’s website also claims sermorelin “strengthens the immune system” while neglecting to mention potential side effects.
Nessel’s office says the medical professionals with the Department of Health and Human Services expressed concern over Davison’s statements, which they say are untrue and unsupported by medical evidence.
The attorney general says her department told Davison to provide assurances within 10 days that Skin Envy will issue a public retraction, no longer claim that its sermorelin injections prevent COVID-19, and will not use the video making this claim in any advertising going forward.
“Misleading and false claims related to consumer products will not be tolerated,” said Nessel. “It is my hope Ms. Davison will abide by our notice and that further action is not necessary in this matter.”
“There are proven, scientific methods to prevent COVID-19,” said Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical executive and MDHHS deputy director of health. “We urge Michigan residents to get the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. Wearing masks, washing hands frequently and avoiding indoor gatherings are other ways to prevent COVID-19. Michiganders should be suspicious of claims that products such as sermorelin can prevent them from getting COVID-19.”
The attorney general’s office says Skin Envy has engaged in the following unfair trade practices:
• Representing that goods or services have sponsorship, approval, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities that they do not have or that a person has sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation, or connection that he or she does not have.
• Failing to reveal a material fact, the omission of which tends to mislead or deceive the consumer, and which fact could not reasonably be known by the consumer.
• Making a representation of fact or statement of fact material to the transaction such that a person reasonably believes the represented or suggested state of affairs to be other than it actually is.
• Failing to reveal facts that are material to the transaction in light of representations of fact made in a positive manner.
You can read the full notice of intended action sent to Davison from the attorney general’s office online.
