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This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.
The ad, which uses the medical center's name and logo, falsely claims that St. Luke’s is running a 50th anniversary sale for a supposed joint pain cure
Claim: St. Luke’s Medical Center is commemorating its 50th anniversary with a sale offering a 70% discount on its branded bee venom product, which claims to cure joint pain.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: On April 23, the Facebook page “St. Luke’s Hospital News 24h” posted an announcement about a supposed 50th anniversary sale by St. Luke’s Hospital. As of this writing, the post has received 1,100 reactions and 595 comments, and it has reached 194,000 users on Facebook.
The post claims that the bee venom product is registered by the hospital and serves as a therapeutic solution for joint pain, along with other purported benefits: “St. Luke’s Hospital at ang unang taon ng Bee Venom — isang likas at makabagong solusyon para sa pananakit ng kasu-kasuan, eksklusibong sinaliksik at rehistrado ng ospital.”
(St. Luke’s Hospital and the first year of Bee Venom — a natural and innovative solution for joint pain, exclusively researched and registered by the hospital.)
In the background, the voice of journalist Karen Davila can be heard providing more details about the product and the supposed sale.
The facts: The ad is fake and is not affiliated with the hospital. St. Luke’s Medical Center only has one official Facebook page under its own name. The Facebook page named “St. Luke’s Hospital News 24h” is not verified and posts a variety of uncorroborated health-related content.
Additionally, the hospital’s website stated that St. Luke’s was established in 1903 as a free clinic in Tondo, Manila, then called “Dispensary of St. Luke the Beloved Physician.” Contrary to the claim that the hospital will be celebrating its 50th year, 2025 marks the medical center’s 122nd anniversary.
AI voice cloning: Eleven Labs’ AI speech classifier detected a 98% probability that the audio in the video was AI-generated, suggesting that Davila was not, in fact, endorsing the product mentioned in the post.
Unregistered: The product endorsed in this post is not registered with the Philippine Food and Drug Administration, based on a search using the verification portal on its website.
Rappler has debunked similar claims advertising bee venom products and supposed cures for joint pain, with some posts deceptively using the names or images of healthcare institutions:
- FACT CHECK: Fake UP-PGH page posts AI-edited bone and joint pain ‘cure’ ad
- FACT CHECK: Ad for gout, joint pain ‘cure’ uses deepfake video of Filipino doctor
- FACT CHECK: Fake page posts arthritis ‘cure’ ad with manipulated video of Filipino doctor
- FACT CHECK: Fake Philippine General Hospital page promotes arthritis ‘cure’
– Samantha Audrey Evangelista/Rappler.com
Samantha Audrey Evanglista is a Rappler volunteer. They are a third-year BA Communication Research student at the University of the Philippines Diliman.
Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.
