National Consumers League statement on FDA action regarding CBD

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November 29, 2019

Leading consumer advocate urges ‘buyer beware’ as busiest shopping season of the year gets underway

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League and a convening partner of Consumers for Safe CBD, today released the following statement in response to FDA’s recent action regarding CBD:

“The decision by the FDA to send 15 new warning letters and remind consumers of potential harm caused by untested and illegal CBD is a step forward in keeping millions of Americans safe. While regular communication from the FDA is helpful, it’s critical that we pursue tangible actions that will lead to broad awareness and prevent the sale of harmful CBD products in a marketplace that is growing by the day. This includes enforcing existing regulations regarding labeling and ingredients, as well as setting safe concentration levels. We cannot wake up a year from now and wish that we had done something when there are practical and achievable solutions right in front of us. Our recent polling shows that 83 percent of registered voters support regulating CBD. We need the gold standard that the FDA provides now more than ever.

“Today marks the start of the busiest shopping season of the year. As consumers head to stores and browse the Internet for deals, we are urging buyer beware when it comes to CBD products. The risk of not getting what you pay for and, even worse, putting one’s own health in jeopardy is far too great. Until the FDA steps in with its stamp of approval, we have no choice but to warn consumers to avoid unregulated CBD products and encourage family and friends to do the same.

“The National Consumers League and Consumers for Safe CBD will continue to work with advocates, policymakers and other stakeholders to ensure that we keep people safe, provide a much-needed sense of clarity and put the interests of the consumer first.”

Learn more about the CBD Myths and Facts HERE.

Learn more about what could be in CBD products HERE.

See what others are saying about CBD HERE.

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

NCL applauds Congressional oversight of the live event ticketing industry

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November 22, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—The National Consumers League (NCL) the nation’s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy organization, today applauded the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s bipartisan oversight of the live event ticketing industry. The committee’s decision to launch an investigation into the live event industry’s opaque ticketing practices represents an important step forward in empowering fans by providing the transparency needed to encourage competition and fix the broken live event ticketing industry.  

The following statement is attributable to John Breyault, Vice President of Public Policy, Telecommunications and Fraud at the National Consumers League:

“In the absence of competition in the primary ticket market, consumers are forced to deal with a litany of unfair trade practices that create a rigged game. This includes secret holdbacks that trick fans into paying more for tickets by creating a sense of false scarcity and outrageous service fees which are often not disclosed until near the end of the purchase process. Today’s bipartisan oversight of the ticketing industry is a positive step towards restoring sanity and fairness into the live event marketplace.

Oversight alone, however, will not be enough to fix a rigged live event ticket market. Legislative action is sorely needed. Fortunately, the Better Oversight of Secondary Sales and Accountability in Concert Ticketing Act of 2019 (“BOSS ACT”), which is currently pending in both chambers of Congress, will provide a comprehensive fix to the ticketing industry. This bill will end the use of deceptive holdbacks and ridiculous undisclosed fees. It will also require ticket sellers to be upfront on whether they are affiliated with a venue and ensure that ticket holders can sell or give their ticket away as they see fit.”

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

Consumer group urges District of Columbia to pass critical data security legislation

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November 12, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—Today, the National Consumers League, the Nation’s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy organization, testified before the Council of the District of Columbia in support of the Security Breach Protection Amendment Act of 2019.

The following is attributable to NCL’s Public Policy Manager Brian Young:

“This consumer protection bill will help stop breaches before they happen by requiring holders of personal data, to take reasonable steps to secure and safeguard the data they have been entrusted with. When breaches happen, it is often because the business did not utilize current best practices to secure data, and yet, it is the consumer that bears the price for the business’ misstep. Consumers cannot and should not be expected to carry the load when it comes to protecting the data they share with businesses and other organizations. NCL believes that each councilmember has a unique opportunity to safeguard District residents’ data through this bill. NCL urges the Council of the District of Columbia to quickly pass and implement this critical consumer protection bill.”

Brian Young’s full testimony can be found here (PDF).

Video footage of Brian Young’s testimony is available here.

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

NCL applauds FTC action to reign in deceptive marketing in the wireless industry

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November 5, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—Today, the National Consumers League, the nation’s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy organization applauded the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for its successful investigation and settlement with AT&T after the wireless provider misled millions of its customers. In 2014, the FTC found that AT&T had secretly slowed down or “throttled” consumers’ Internet speeds on their supposedly “unlimited” plans and then charged consumers early termination fees if they wanted to switch providers to receive better service. As a result of the settlement, AT&T will create a $60 million dollar settlement fund that will be paid out to current and former users of AT&T’s “unlimited” plan. 

The following statement is attributable to Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League: 

“When consumers are promised unlimited data, they should receive unlimited data. AT&T’s policy of slowing down consumers data, to the point where they could no longer stream videos after using as little as two gigabits of data, is a classic example of bait and switch. NCL applauds the FTC’s efforts to protect consumers from false advertising and unscrupulous business practices in the wireless industry. NCL looks forward to seeing the FTC take additional steps to ensure that the marketplace remains fair and honest for all consumers.”

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

CBD is not the cure for whatever ails you

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Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve surely seen the dozens of ‘miraculous’ CBD products available today. Health food stores, pet supply stores, gas stations, and even your neighborhood pharmacy and grocery stores are carrying a plethora of CBD-infused products. CBD is included in everything from lotions and oils, beauty products, pet treats, and “tampons.” You can buy CBD-infused workout clothing and even take CBD yoga classes.

CBD, or cannabidiol, is a compound found in cannabis and derived from the hemp plant. After the passage of the Farm Bill, CBD is now legal and CBD products are marketed as having little or no THC, the primary psychoactive element in marijuana. However, under the bill, these products may lawfully contain as much as 0.3 percent THC, which is enough to produce intoxication or a positive result on a drug test, which has led to many workers unwittingly losing their jobs.

Sales of products containing CBD have exploded in recent years. In 2018, Americans purchased $500 million in products containing CBD. By 2022, that amount is expected to more than triple to reach $1.8 billion nationwide.

Consumers, take note! Illegal marketing of these products include unsubstantiated health claims as innocuous as offering “a higher sense of well-being” to the extreme claims of therapeutic benefits such as treating Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, or AIDS. 

Our concern is that most CBD products on the shelves today fail to meet the safety standards we have come to expect:

  • Most have not been scientifically tested for safety and efficacy.
  • CBD product labels aren’t accurate in lists of ingredients and potency.
  • The purity and potency of ingredients in most CBD products have not been verified by reliable third parties.

Without these safeguards, consumers may be using these products or offering them to their children and pets with blindfolds on.

Exaggerated claims of unproven benefits are nothing new, but with the legalization of CBD, there’s a new explosion of untested products that demand attention from regulators. CBD could be key to the development of many new treatments and therapies. One indication is the success of the first FDA-approved drug containing CBD in controlling two types of rare, childhood-onset seizures. However, without better regulation and enforcement, unsafe dosages of CBD and the use of adulterated products make for a minefield of consumer caveat emptor.

Clinical studies have demonstrated potential risks of CBD, including liver toxicity, fatigue, and harmful interactions with other drugs. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently begun to take action. In October, it issued a strongly worded advisory discouraging pregnant and breastfeeding mothers from using CBD products. It also recently warned a Florida company that was illegally selling unapproved products containing CBD online with unsubstantiated claims that the products treat teething pain and earaches in infants, autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), among other conditions or diseases. We welcome that action by the FDA, and we want to see it doing more.

Advocates recognize the dangers for consumers and we are mobilizing. Earlier this month, National Consumers League (NCL) staff presented at a roundtable discussion of consumers and other partners about FDA’s authority to protect consumers via product testing and regulation of product marketing. The discussion allowed further sharing of information and identified opportunities to bring commonsense changes to the marketplace.

Consumers need access to good information about CBD, how to understand concentration levels in products, and the products’ risks. The FDA should take a more active role as a regulatory agency overseeing products that make health benefit claims. Our regulators should help consumers understand the difference between FDA-approved medicines and consumer products, including a definition of a safe level of CBD.

We welcome the potential that CBD has to offer new therapies and treatments, but the products in the marketplace must be safe and proven effective with hard science. NCL is committed to doing its part to help protect and educate consumers.