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Cease-and-desist orders dropped against Florida spa

The main entrance and security guard house at the walled compound of the Hippocrates Health Institute in Florida.
The main entrance and security guard house at the walled compound of the Hippocrates Health Institute in Florida. Chris So/Toronto Star via Getty Images

TORONTO – The Florida Department of Health has withdrawn cease-and-desist orders against the directors of a health spa where two Ontario aboriginal girls received treatment.

The department sent cease-and-desist letters in February to co-directors of the Hippocrates Health Institute, Brian Clement and his wife, Anna Maria Clement, saying it had “probable cause” to believe they were practising medicine without a license.

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A department spokesman says the orders were withdrawn due to “lack of evidence.”

In a statement, Clement says the decision is proof that he and his wife are licensed nutritionists who “have not and do not practice medicine.”

Last year, two First Nations girls went to the spa after stopping chemotherapy treatment for leukemia in favour of traditional aboriginal medicine and other alternative therapies.

The families of both girls say they went to the spa to relax and eat better.

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