Health
Search engine pulls ads promoting controversial weight loss drug
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Shonky websites purporting to sell an in-demand Hollywood weight loss drug have been appearing above health warnings in Australian search engine results, as the regulator continues to crack down on the illegal sale of Ozempic.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) confirmed it was contacting search engines and social media companies about content promoting semaglutide, better known by its brand name Ozempic, as part of its ongoing investigations into scams relating to the drug.
The TGA has asked Australians to be wary of businesses claiming to sell the prescription appetite suppressant injection online, amid reports of consumers both paying for the drug and never receiving the product, as well as receiving drugs which are not semaglutide.
A Google search for “buy Ozempic Australia” last week returned several sponsored results, including online stores claiming to sell the drug without prescription through bank transfer or credit card payment.
It is illegal to advertise a prescription drug in Australia.
After being alerted to the presence of the ads, a Google spokesperson confirmed they were removed.
“Google has strict policies that govern the kind of ads that we allow on our platform. When we find ads that violate our policies, we remove them,” the spokesperson said
Although the regulator said it could not comment on ongoing investigations that may result in compliance action, it confirmed it was “working with” several digital platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, eBay, Amazon and Gumtree, as well as Google and other search engines, to remove unlawful advertising and crack down on scams.
Last week, the Sun-Herald and Sunday Age revealed one online forum that purported to facilitate sale of the drug had falsified endorsements from current and retired health practitioners.
The TGA has requested the removal of almost 1000 advertisements for Ozempic appearing on social media and websites, including influencer posts, since July last year.
According to the regulator’s social media advertising guide, any “statement, pictorial representation or design that is intended, whether directly or indirectly, to promote the use or supply of the products is an advertisement”.
“When unlawful advertisements come to the TGA’s attention, we alert the particular social media platforms who typically quickly take action within their user policies,” the TGA said in a statement.
Prescriptions for Ozempic, which is registered as a Type 2 diabetes treatment in Australia, skyrocketed in early 2022 following a rise in doctors prescribing the drug for weight loss, a use it is registered for in the US.
The rise in these “off-label” prescriptions, which are a legitimate way for GPs to prescribe medications for uses other than their registered use in Australia, led to a national shortage and people with diabetes reporting they were unable to access the drug.
The TGA announced last month it was working with Ozempic’s manufacturer, Novo Nordisk, and wholesalers to fairly distribute a new supply of the drug which arrived early this year.
It said supply was set to return gradually over the next few months but it “strongly recommended” the drug continue to be prioritised for people with Type 2 diabetes.
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Alberta Health Services (AHS) has confirmed a case of measles in Edmonton, and is advising the public that the individual was out in public while infectious.
Measles is an extremely contagious disease that is spread easily through the air, and can only be prevented through immunization.
AHS says individuals who were in the following locations during the specified dates and times, may have been exposed to measles.
- April 16
- Edmonton International Airport, international arrivals and baggage claim area — between 3:20 p.m. and 6 p.m.
- April 20
- Stollery Children’s Hospital Emergency Department — between 5 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- April 22
- 66th Medical Clinic (13635 66 St NW Edmonton) — between 12:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Pharmacy 66 (13637 66 St NW Edmonton) — between 12:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- April 23
- Stollery Children’s Hospital Emergency Department — between 4:40 a.m. to 9:33 a.m.
AHS says anyone who attended those locations during those times is at risk of developing measles if they’ve not had two documented doses of measles-containing vaccine.
Those who have not had two doses, who are pregnant, under one year of age, or have a weakened immune system are at greatest risk of getting measles and should contact Health Link at 1-877-720-0707.
Symptoms
Symptoms of measles include a fever of 38.3° C or higher, cough, runny nose, and/or red eyes, a red blotchy rash that appears three to seven days after fever starts, beginning behind the ears and on the face and spreading down the body and then to the arms and legs.
If you have any of these symptoms stay home and call Health Link.
In Alberta, measles vaccine is offered, free of charge, through Alberta’s publicly funded immunization program. Children in Alberta typically receive their first dose of measles vaccine at 12 months of age, and their second dose at 18 months of age.
Health
U.S. tightens rules for dairy cows a day after bird flu virus fragments found in pasteurized milk samples – Toronto Star
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Infected cows were already prohibited from being transported out of state, but that was based on the physical characteristics of the milk, which looks curdled when a cow is infected, or a cow has decreased lactation or low appetite, both symptoms of infection.
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