The state of Missouri is suing disgraced televangelist Jim Bakker for selling a fake coronavirus cure on his website and show.
Attorney General Eric Schmitt named Bakker and his production company, Morningside Church Productions, as the defendants in the suit which was filed in the state’s circuit court of Stone County.
Both Bakker and the church are based in the state.
The suit states that the defendants ‘violated the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act by falsely promising to consumers that Silver Solution can cure, eliminate, kill, or deactivate coronavirus and/or boost elderly consumers’ immune system and help keep them healthy when there is, in fact, no vaccine, pill, potion or other product available to treat or cure coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).’
During a February 12 episode of the show with guest ‘naturapathic doctor’ Sherill Sellman, Bakker posited that the Silver Solution sold on the show’s website would be effective against the coronavirus.
The suit calls for a temporary restraining order against Bakker and the production company.
It states that the defendants ‘solicited the business of Missouri and non-Missouri consumers to purchase Silver Solution as a product to “support your immune system”, “speed up natural processes that have positive effects on the body”, and “resonating at just the right frequency”… to… “disrupt foreign elements without disturbing the body’s natural environment.’
The suit mentions that Sellman and Bakker’s exchange was referenced on the show’s website, where the Solution was sold.
Missouri is the first state to sue Bakker in connection to Silver Solution, with the suit mentioning an Food and Drug Administration (FDA) letter from last week that slammed the company and others for selling unapproved coronavirus drugs.
‘The FDA considers the sale and promotion of fraudulent COVID-19 products to be a threat to the public health,’ the FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn, M.D., said in the letter. We have an aggressive surveillance program that routinely monitors online sources for health fraud products, especially during a significant public health issue such as this one.
‘We understand consumers are concerned about the spread of COVID-19 and urge them to talk to their health care providers, as well as follow advice from other federal agencies about how to prevent the spread of this illness. We will continue to aggressively pursue those that place the public health at risk and hold bad actors accountable.’
The website is no longer selling Silver Solution products but Sellman is expected to make an appearance on Baker’s show on March 19.
News of the lawsuit comes after the office of the New York Attorney General released a scathing cease-and-desist letter to the televangelist telling him to stop trying to sell people a fake cure for the coronavirus.
Lisa Landau, Chief of the Health Care Bureau, gave ‘The Jim Bakker Show’ 10 days to comply with the letter that was sent to the convicted fraudster on Thursday.
The letter highlights that during a February 12 screening of the conservative show, Bakker posited that the Silver Solution sold on the show’s website would be effective against the coronavirus.