THE COMPETITION PROMOTION AND СONSUMER PROTECTION COMMITTEE OF THE REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN CALLS ON BUSINESS ENTITIES ADVERTISING MEDICAL SERVICES TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF ADVERTISING LEGISLATION
Recently, cases have been observed in advertisements for medical services involving the use of statements such as “we will cure you of the disease for life,” “absolutely safe,” “we will cure you in 3 days,” “there are no side effects,” and “all patients who came to us have recovered,” which exaggerate medical outcomes, safety or effectiveness.
In this regard, the use in advertisements for medical services of information that guarantees results, promises absolute safety, denies the existence of contraindications, promises patient satisfaction with the outcome, or disregards the individual characteristics of the human body may constitute a violation of the requirements of applicable legislation.
In addition, it is prohibited to advertise services that are not specified in the license issued for carrying out medical activities.
Pursuant to Article 16 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On Advertising,” improper advertising (advertising which, as a result of inaccuracy, ambiguity, exaggeration, omission, violation of requirements regarding the time, place and method of dissemination, as well as other requirements established by legislation, misleads or may mislead users of advertising) is prohibited.
We remind you that, pursuant to Article 47 of the Law “On Advertising,” the placement of improper advertising, as well as refusal to publish counter-advertising, entails the imposition of a fine in the amount of seventy times the base calculation amount.
Furthermore, under Article 7 of the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights,” any damage caused to a consumer by goods (works or services) purchased as a result of false advertising (information) must be compensated in full by the manufacturer (contractor or seller).
The Competition Promotion and Сonsumer protection Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan calls on business entities advertising medical services to bring their advertisements into compliance with the requirements of applicable legislation and refrain from providing consumers with false or misleading information.
The Committee informs that monitoring of advertising in the field of medical services is carried out on a systematic basis.
