Pa. Shuts Down Pro-Tel Prescription Drug Plan Sale to Seniors

Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett announced that a Pennsylvania business will refund consumers, pay fines and get out of the health care business following claims that it used deceptive marketing tactics to lure senior citizens into purchasing prescription drug assistance programs that are available for free. Consumers
have until March 21, 2006 to file a complaint to obtain restitution.

The settlement is with Michael and Dora Markle and their
business Pro-Tel Planning, in Red Lion, York County and resolves alleged violations of Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law.

According to investigators, between 2004 and 2005 the company advertised statewide the sale of its services that claimed to help qualified senior citizens apply for low or no cost prescription drugs from the pharmaceutical manufacturers’ Patient Assistance Programs.

Pro-Tel charged consumers a $60 fee, per prescription, per year to fill out applications and other documents, according to officials. The ads and solicitations that reached thousands of older Pennsylvanians also allegedly included false representations that consumers were required to purchase life insurance to qualify for the services.

Corbett said consumers who wish to file a complaint to obtain restitution
should contact the Health Care Section at 1-877-888-4877 or visit
http://www.attorneygeneral.gov.