Press Releases

Legislation introduced by Congressman Earl L. "Buddy" Carter (R-Ga.) to prevent scams during the COVID-19 pandemic is now law. President Donald J. Trump today signed Carter's Combating Pandemic Scams Act.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in numerous scams across the country. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have been working together to stop fraud like companies making false claims about COVID-19 treatments and vaccines or scammers securing financial information when offering fraudulent COVID-19 assistance. 

The Combating Pandemic Scams Act will require the FDA, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the United States Postal Service (USPS) and the Internet Crime Complaint Center (ICCC) to inform the public about the scams that have been reported. With this knowledge, the public can better avoid the scams. 
"This law will help save lives and money, and will help ensure Americans do not fall victim to a pandemic-related scam," said Carter. "Especially as vaccines are shipped across the country, Americans need to have full confidence that what they are receiving is legitimate and not fraudulent. With this law, Americans will have unprecedented access to learn about scams that are happening so they can avoid them. I thank my colleagues in the House and Senate and President Trump for bringing this bill across the finish line."

The Combating Pandemic Scams Act requires the FTC, along with HHS, USPS, and the ICCC, to develop and disseminate information to the public on coronavirus scams including mail, telemarketing, internet and robocall fraud. The information must include instructions on how to report scams and it must be continuously updated with the most up-to-date information.

It also requires the timely establishment of a national database on scams in consultation with other federal partners.