Miramar, Florida-based mental health and addiction treatment provider Evoke Wellness has settled a lawsuit from the Federal Trade Commission over its advertising practices for $1.9 million.

Initially, a $7 million civil penalty was imposed on the company, but it was suspended due to the company’s “inability to pay the full amount,” according to an FTC press release. However, if Evoke Wellness does not resolve what was agreed to in the settlement, or if Evoke continues to violate the law, they will be required to pay the $7 million in full.

The company allegedly used Google Ads and deceptive telemarketing tactics to pose as other clinics and impersonate treatment providers, according to court documents.

Between 2021 and 2023, Evoke Wellness utilized “deceptive dynamic keyword insertion” across online advertisement campaigns to generate 68,510 search ads that prominently featured the names of clinics not at all affiliated with Evoke. This reportedly led to at least 3,502 new consumer calls to Evoke.

When speaking to an Evoke representative on the other line, they reportedly did not inform callers that they had reached Evoke rather than the clinic seen in the advertisement. This deception persisted even when a potential patient asked specifically if they had reached the clinic from the advertisement, according to excerpts of phone conversations in the court documents.

The goal, according to the FTC’s investigation, was “to divert callers who [were] searching for other clinics into Evoke’s treatment centers.”

The FTC filed the lawsuit in January, claiming Evoke’s practices violated the FTC Act and the Opioid Addiction Recovery Fraud Prevention Act of 2018.

In addition to paying $1.9 million to settle the case, Evoke also agreed to “a ban on impersonating other companies, including other substance use disorder treatment clinics and other deceptive advertising,” according to the press release.

The company is also required to implement a compliance program to monitor their call centers for any further misrepresentation or violations and take corrective action against anyone who engages in those practices again.

BHB reached out to Evoke Wellness for comment multiple times and was told over the phone it does not have any comment on the matter at this time.

The FTC recommends that providers who are concerned about being misrepresented in online advertisements without their knowledge should extensively check what surfaces in a Google search for the company name and report fraud if the company’s name or information is being used without permission.