Texas AG continues crackdown on corporate practices impacting public health: Pfizer and TikTok in the focus
Austin, Texas – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has moved decisively to defend consumer interests by appealing the recent dismissal of his lawsuit against pharmaceutical behemoth Pfizer Inc. Paxton is refuting the company’s assertions on the safety and effectiveness of its COVID-19 vaccination. This actions follows after a district court essentially dismissed the case late last year citing federal immunity protections for Pfizer under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act.
Attorney General Paxton’s office released a statement detailing the reasons behind the appeal. “Pfizer repeatedly and knowingly misrepresented the effectiveness and safety of their COVID-19 vaccine and pressured Americans to take the shot without full knowledge of the risks,” said Attorney General Paxton.
“When consumers questioned the effectiveness and safety of the vaccine, Pfizer sought to silence them—prioritizing profits over the truth. I will not stop until Pfizer is held accountable for deceptively pushing its COVID-19 vaccine on consumers.”
This court fight marks Paxton’s ongoing tough stance against what he believes to be dishonest behavior by big companies.
Apart from his continuous litigation against Pfizer, Paxton has also started a lawsuit against the well-known social media platform TikTok for allegedly deceiving consumers on the safety of its content for children.
The lawsuit against TikTok claims that the platform misled its users on the nature of its material and safety policies, which frequently include videos unsuitable for their younger audience. Paxton contends that despite platform assertions of having strict content rules, TikTok failed to sufficiently protect kids from exposure to graphic content including drugs, nudity, drinking, and profanity.
“TikTok actively worked to deceive parents and lure children onto their app despite the presence of an overwhelming amount of profane and illicit material,” said Attorney General Paxton. “Companies may not jeopardize the health and wellbeing of Texas children by blatantly lying about the products they provide.”
Aimed at improving the online safety and privacy of children in Texas, this legal action fits Paxton’s past efforts under the Securing Children Online Through Parental Empowerment (SCOPE) Act.
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Especially in areas impacting public health and children’s safety, both of the measures against Pfizer and TikTok highlight a larger regulatory drive by the Texas Attorney General’s Office to challenge false practices and guarantee corporate responsibility. These legal challenges point to one of the most well-known state legal officials in the country closely examining corporate statements concerning consumer safety and health standards.
