A St. Louis chiropractor who was charged under a new law meant to protect against fraudulent COVID claims agreed to an $80,000 payment to settle the federal case.
"The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) confirmed to Dr. Nepute’s counsel in writing that Dr. Nepute is not under any other FTC investigation," said Jay Dobbs, one of Dr. Eric Nepute's attorneys.
The FTC alleged in a 27-page complaint that Nepute promoted vitamin D and Zinc as a prevention for COVID-19, which violates the COVID-19 Consumer Protection Act of 2020.
“Dr. Nepute neither admits nor denies any of the allegations in the complaint except only as necessary to establish jurisdiction over this action,” wrote Eastern District of Missouri Judge Ronnie White in his Aug. 2 order. “Dr. Nepute agrees to enter into this order to avoid further uncertainty and expense associated with this lawsuit and not as an admission of liability.”
Dobbs said his client already paid $25,000 and will pay the remaining $55,000 in February 2024.
“The settlement represents a huge win for Dr. Nepute and a surrender by the FTC,” he said. “The government argued that Dr. Nepute made certain statements regarding vitamin D and Zinc and compared those supplements favorably to the efficacy of vaccines.”
The FTC also alleged that Nepute was liable for 10,175,234 violations under the new law.
But after the Department of Justice submitted 64 video advertisement and more than 100,000 pages of evidence, the court overruled the government's motion and declined to conclude that Nepute actually made the statements the government attributed to him.
“Dr. Nepute’s payment is minuscule relative to the government's original demands and the cost of going forward," Dobbs told the St. Louis Record. "Had Dr. Nepute continued to a verdict in his favor, it would've been after facing additional millions of dollars in legal fees and years of being tied up in court. The settlement was a no-brainer for Dr. Nepute, a victory in the face of government overreach.”
In a separate agreement, the company Quickwork LLC agreed to pay a $1 million fine. Nepute is involved with the company as a manager. The defendants allegedly mischaracterized the results of scientific studies to support some of their claims, according to a DOJ press release.
“The DOJ’s press release lumping in the $1 million Quickwork, LLC payment fails to disclose that the Quickwork settlement took place last November without any role or participation of Dr. Nepute, who is only one of three managers of Quickwork," Dobbs added. "Dr. Nepute did not sign that stipulation and he had no role in the Quickwork negotiations.”