Voltaren taken to court after misleading arthritis sufferers
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has taken the makers of Voltaren to court over misleading claims regarding arthritis pain relief.
A year after slugging Nurofen with a $6 million fine for misleading customers, the ACCC has taken aim at Voltaren for essentially the same issue, alleging the drugmakers misled customers in the marketing of the Voltaren Emulgel and Osteo Gel pain relief products.
Osteo Gel is marketed as being specifically formulated to treat osteoarthritis conditions and is $3 more expensive than Emulgel, but contains the exact same ingredients.
The head of the ACCC Rod Sims said he was “disappointed” the consumer watchdog had to take action, particularly after last year’s incident with Nurofen.
“We’re so disappointed that having taken the Nurofen case, with all of the publicity around it, that we find this sort of behaviour still continuing,” Mr Sims said.
The ACCC boss added this case raises concerns that the pharmaceutical companies were trying to exploit older, vulnerable consumers.
“We’re always concerned with conduct that affects consumers who could be seen as slightly more vulnerable,” he said.
“What was happening here is that they were saying you’ve got a product that is specifically formulated for treating osteoarthritis, particularly in the knees and fingers, and indeed saying that also it’s more effective than Emulgel.
“Our concerns were not only that consumers were paying more for Osteo Gel, but they could actually buy both products and have them in their medical cabinet, thinking they treat different things.”
A spokesperson for GSK, the parent company that manufactures Voltaren brand products, responded to the ACCC’s allegations in a statement: “We are disappointed the ACCC has decided to commence proceedings against us.
“We have been cooperating with them and proactively trying to understand their concerns related to our products, however to date they have not provided clarity about the basis for their concern.”
What are your thoughts? Do you think there are problems with the way these pain relief products are marketed?