Mehmet Oz, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, speaks at a primary night election gathering in Newtown, Pa., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

Days after being declared the winner of the PA GOP Senate primary election, Dr. Mehmet Oz delivered keynote remarks at a meeting for a lobbying group that supports multi-level marketing — a haven for pyramid schemes.

The lobbying group, called “Direct Selling Association,” hosted the TV personality as the keynote speaker for the conference’s CEO Breakfast event, held at The Boca Raton resort in Florida on June 7. The event took place just four days after Oz secured the nomination in an exceedingly close primary. On June 3, former hedge fund executive Dave McCormick unexpectedly conceded before the state recount’s results were announced, which showed on June 8 that Oz won by fewer than 1,000 votes.

Oz’s presence in Florida is confirmed in an Instagram photo description posted by DSA President and CEO Joe Mariano. He can also be seen in a photo posted to Instagram by Murat Mayor, DSA’s Director of Market Research, according to LinkedIn.

Screenshot of a June 7 Instagram post by Murat Mayor showing him with Dr. Mehmet Oz

 

His attendance at the conference — and at another DSA event last fall — highlights his track record promoting MLM companies. One MLM company, USANA Health Services, was a sponsor of Oz’s show for much of its 12-year run on television, Politico reported. “The Dr. Oz Show” featured Usana’s nutritional supplements, skincare and wellness products regularly, calling the company a “trusted partner and sponsor.” 

Oz and his show allegedly made over $50 million between 2013-2018 to promote Usana products and act as a brand ambassador, according to a 2018 court filing Politico uncovered. Representatives from Oz’s campaign disputed this amount to Politico while refusing to provide their own figures.

Kevin Guest, Usana’s CEO, is now also DSA’s chairman. DSA’s political action committee contributes thousands of dollars to candidates across the political spectrum, Politico reported, based on “a variety of factors” that a DSA spokesperson did not elaborate on. DSA held 120 meetings with congressional offices in 2021 and sent 1,038 letters to U.S. senators about protecting MLM sellers through the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, according to the group’s most recent government affairs report.

The group’s advocacy continues despite the Federal Trade Commission warning that “some MLMs are illegal pyramid schemes” — many critics assert that all of them are — and that most people who join these schemes make little or no profits, even losing money.

Oz’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment on whether he will continue to support DSA and MLMs if elected senator in November. He will go head-to-head with Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman in a general election that could help determine control of a closely divided U.S. Senate.