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NACDS applauds Senate Committee for holding hearing on INFORM Consumers Act

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Ben Dugan, director of organized retail crime and corporate investigations, CVS Health, at the Senate Committee on the Judiciary hearing on Tuesday, Nov. 2.

ARLINGTON, Va. — NACDS is commending the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary for holding a hearing today on the ongoing issue of organized retail crime networks and the threat they pose to the health and safety of online and in-store consumers.

The hearing — entitled “Cleaning Up Online Marketplaces: Protecting Against Stolen, Counterfeit, and Unsafe Goods” — centered on the critical need to increase transparency and accountability in e-commerce marketplaces, and included discussion on the role that the INFORM Consumers Act would play in protecting online consumers from illicit products and fraud and in-store consumers and store teams from criminal activity.  

“We applaud the Committee’s continued commitment to curbing the flow of counterfeit products and safeguarding those unsuspecting consumers who are shopping online,” said NACDS president and CEO Steven Anderson. “The introduction of the INFORM Consumers Act in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate marks a major step toward a strong final bill that can be signed into law, and we thank Representatives Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) for their leadership on the issue and for their sponsorship of legislation which would bring more accountability and transparency to digital marketplaces.” 

Of note, the committee hearing included testimony from Ben Dugan, director of organized retail crime and corporate investigations at CVS Health. 

Importantly, Dugan emphasized that the bipartisan legislation is a vital first step in combating organized retail crime networks — and critically — in promoting safety and transparency for the consumer: 

“We need urgent action from this Congress. The INFORM Consumers Act — championed by the leadership of this committee and several of its members — will make a meaningful difference for us. This bill will help protect consumers, it will aid law enforcement and it will prevent crime. Making it harder for criminals to easily dispose of stolen goods to online marketplaces is the most significant step that we can take to curtail retail theft and reduce the real harm organized retail crime represents to our employees and our customers,” Dugan said. 

The INFORM Consumers Act seeks to promote the health and safety of consumers by requiring online retail marketplaces to verify high-volume third-party sellers of new, unused goods on their platforms and to provide consumers with basic business information and contact details on third-party sellers.  

In early October, NACDS applauded the introduction of H.R. 5502, which has the bipartisan support of eight Congressional members: Representatives Schakowsky (D-IL); Bilirakis (R-FL); Kathy Castor (D-FL); Tony Cárdenas (D-CA); Kathleen Rice (D-NY); Richard Hudson (R-NC); Jim Banks (R-IN) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA). 

A Senate companion bill – S.936 – was introduced in March 2021, and has the bipartisan support of Senators Durbin (D-IL);  Cassidy (R-LA);  Hirono (D-HI);  Grassley (R-IA); Coons (D-DE); Tillis (R-NC); Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and Marco Rubio (R-FL). 

Organized retail crime and the INFORM Consumers Act were among the priority issues on which NACDS leadership and pharmacy advocates presented during the virtual 2021 NACDS RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill event in March 2021. Following NACDS’ virtual fly-in event, Morning Consult published an opinion piece by NACDS President and CEO Steven C. Anderson entitled “How Congress Can Make Consumer Safety a Top Priority in 2021” and urging the introduction of the INFORM Consumers Act.


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