FTC向25家医保营销商发警告信：不得就计划条款与费用欺骗消费者
美国联邦贸易委员会（FTC）10月29日宣布，该机构工作人员已向25家医保计划营销商与线索生成商发出警告信，正值医保开放注册季，要求这些公司不得就所售计划的条款、福利与费用欺骗消费者。
收信公司营销或推广的产品包括《平价医疗法案》（ACA）市场医保计划，以及有限赔偿计划、医疗折扣项目等其他医疗产品。FTC列举的可能违法说法包括：歪曲计划的福利或限制、把并非大病医保的产品说成全面医疗保险、歪曲计划费用，以及谎称参保可获免费赠品、现金奖励或返现。
FTC消费者保护局局长Christopher Mufarrige说：「让医疗更透明、更可负担是FTC的首要任务之一。面对不断上涨的医疗费用，美国人不该再担心一个医保计划或项目是不是它宣称的那样。」他表示，FTC将持续紧盯这一市场，对违法营销不会迟疑追责，「今天的这些信是提醒各家公司：开放注册季不是误述自家计划实际保障内容的邀请函。」
FTC说明，警告信并未指控任何收信方已经违法，而是要求各公司全面自查广告内容、确保合规。信中还附有FTC此前对同类营销商与线索生成商的执法案例。
FTC表示，开放注册季期间预计还将滚动发出更多警告信，并持续监测这一市场中损害消费者的违法行为。
FTC Warns 25 Healthcare Plan Marketers: Do Not Deceive Consumers About Plan Terms and Costs
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on October 29 that its staff have sent warning letters to 25 companies that market healthcare plans or generate sales leads for them, telling the companies not to deceive consumers about the terms of the plans they advertise, as open enrollment season gets under way.
The recipients market or advertise Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace health insurance or other healthcare products such as limited indemnity plans and medical discount programs. Claims the FTC says may violate the law include misrepresenting a plan's benefits or limitations, presenting a product that is not major medical insurance as if it were comprehensive coverage, misrepresenting costs, and falsely promising free offers, cash rewards or rebates for enrolling.
"Making healthcare more transparent and affordable is a top priority for the FTC," said Christopher Mufarrige, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "Americans experiencing rising healthcare costs should not also have to worry about whether a healthcare plan or program is what it claims to be." He said the agency will keep monitoring the market and will not hesitate to hold companies accountable, adding that "open enrollment is not an invitation to misrepresent what their plans actually cover."
The FTC stressed that the letters do not allege any wrongdoing by the recipients. They encourage each company to review its advertising thoroughly for compliance, and they cite prior FTC actions against marketers and lead generators in the same market.
The agency said it expects to send additional warning letters on a rolling basis and is closely monitoring the marketplace for unlawful conduct harming consumers.
发布：GSM·美国（发布链接）
图片来源：美国联邦贸易委员会总部大楼Apex Building（资料图）。Carol M. Highsmith 摄，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / The Apex Building, headquarters of the Federal Trade Commission (file photo). Photo by Carol M. Highsmith, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
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