abcnews | Two state attorneys general ordered a prominent televangelist to stop peddling an alleged coronavirus elixir on his show.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a lawsuit Tuesday against
Jim Bakker for misrepresentations about the effectiveness of "Silver
Solution" as a treatment for coronavirus.
Schmitt's lawsuit came a week
after the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James sent a cease-and-desist order to Bakker, ordering him to stop promoting the supplement as a COVID-19 treatment.
During a Feb. 12 episode of the "The Jim Bakker Show," guest Sherrill
Sellman claimed the so-called Silver Solution was able to eliminate some
strains of coronavirus.
Asked if the Silver Solution would be effective against COVID-19,
specifically, Sellman replied, "Let's say it hasn't been tested on this
strain of the coronavirus, but it's been tested on other strains of the
coronavirus and it has been able to eliminate it within 12 hours."
According to the World Health Organization, there are no current cures
or direct treatments for the novel coronavirus, and the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention said there's no known cure for other
coronavirus variants that cause SARS and MERS.
"Your show's segment may mislead consumers as to the effectiveness of
the Silver Solution product in protecting against the current outbreak,"
the the New York cease-and-desist order said. "Any representation on
the Jim Bakker Show that its Silver Solution products are effective at
combating and/or treating the 2019 novel coronavirus violates New York
law."
