Mass AG Sues Company For Allegedly Marketing False Hand Sanitizer

BOSTON, MA — Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey is suing a school health supplies corporation for allegedly selling more than $100,000 of fake hand sanitizer to Massachusetts school districts, numerous outlets report.

In a lawsuit filed Monday in Suffolk Superior Court, the state alleges that the Illinois-based School Health Corporation claimed its hand sanitizing product, Theraworx Protect, could prevent the spread of COVID-19, even though its product did not contain “any of the key ingredients in hand sanitizer.” The state argues that this violates the Massachusetts False Claims Act.

SHC sold $100,000 worth of Theraworx Protect to school districts in Framingham, Winchester, Nahant, Swampscott, New Bedford, Bridgewater-Raynham, and Wachusett, and the city of Malden, between March and July 2020, the suit claims.

A product must contain ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, or benzalkonium chloride in order for the FDA to allow it to be marketed as “hand sanitizer,” according to a statement from Healey’s office. Healey’s complaint alleges that Theraworx Protect does not contain any of those ingredients, and also contained colloidal silver. In 1999, the FDA ruled that products containing colloidal silver are “not recognized as safe and effective.”

“This company exploited fears around a growing public health crisis in order to profit by selling a bogus hand sanitizer to schools looking to stop the spread,” Healey said in a statement. “We are suing to hold this company accountable for these illegal actions that put the health of our children, teachers, and staff at risk.”

According to Healey’s complaint, the state is seeking three times the amount of damages, civil penalties against the companies, legal fees, and the cost of the investigation.

Last November, Healey’s office also reached a $550,000 settlement with the Federal Resources Supply Company for falsely marketing Theraworx Protect to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, according to the Boston Globe.

School Health representatives have not responded to the Globe’s request for comment.