Drug company owner fined over false claims

SEATTLE – The state Board of Pharmacy has fined the operator of a biotechnology company $415,000 and denied her a license to make drugs, saying she falsely claimed to be a physician and illegally manufactured and sold homeopathic “healthy aging” drugs.

The state says that for more than a decade, Barbara Brewitt, 58, has been illegally manufacturing and selling products made from human-growth hormone through her company, Biomed Comm, at retail stores including Costco and General Nutrition Centers, according to a final order issued Wednesday.

But Brewitt says the charges are false and the state wants to close her down because “they do not understand complementary and alternative medicine – they’re committed to conventional health care.”

In its final order, the Board of Pharmacy denied Brewitt’s application for a license to operate as a drug manufacturer in this state and says she cannot reapply for 10 years.

The impropriety first surfaced in an investigation prompted by Brewitt’s application in 2005 for a manufacturing license for Biomed Comm, said Donn Moyer, spokesman for the state Department of Health.

The board alleges she misrepresented herself as a medical doctor to obtain prescription-only materials to manufacture homeopathic drug products.

In its final order, the Board of Pharmacy said Biomed contracted with another company to make the products, using recombinant human-growth-hormone materials characterized as “research grade,” which were not intended for human use. The Board alleged that Biomed requested that the company remove “not for human use” language from paperwork, but the company refused.

In early 2006, the board ordered Biomed Comm to cease operations, pending a hearing.

Brewitt said she has a doctorate in biological structures, a master’s degree in divinity and has done research at the National Institutes of Health. She said she holds several patents and does double-blind studies on her products.

The company’s Web site says Brewitt has been “heralded” for products that help autistic children and HIV patients. It says its products help aging baby boomers and others by increasing energy, improving appearance and boosting immune systems. Brewitt said the company did $1 million in annual sales before the Board of Pharmacy shut it down.

In November, she sued the Board of Pharmacy in King County Superior Court, alleging it overstepped its authority. That case is scheduled to be heard next year.

Brewitt said she cannot pay the fine and plans to appeal. “It’s aimed at bankrupting me and putting me out of business.”