Michele Beckwith Acting U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California
Stephen D. Meis, a former medical doctor from Visalia, has pleaded guilty to introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce. Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith announced the plea on May 19, 2025.
Meis was associated with Golden Sunrise Pharmaceutical Inc. and Golden Sunrise Nutraceutical Inc., where he served as Medical Director. These companies were involved in manufacturing and selling products purported to treat various medical conditions.
Starting March 30, 2020, Meis, along with Golden Sunrise’s CEO Huu Tieu of Porterville, marketed an herbal mixture named the “Emergency D-Virus Plan of Care” as a COVID-19 treatment. This product included vials of Golden Sunrise drugs such as “Imunstem,” accompanied by an information sheet titled “Emergency D-Virus Plan of Care.” The products were distributed to practitioners, public officials, and others within and outside California.
The drug labeling falsely claimed that ImunStem and other products were “uniquely qualified to treat and modify the course of the virus epidemic in China and other countries.” Additionally, it was misleadingly stated that these were the first dietary supplements approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as prescription medicines for COVID-19 treatment. However, none of these claims were true; no Golden Sunrise product had received FDA approval for any purpose.
Previously, on June 12, 2024, Huu Tieu received an 18-month prison sentence for his role in distributing misbranded drugs.
The investigation was conducted by several agencies including the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation with help from Tulare County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey A. Spivak and Emilia P.E. Morris are handling prosecution duties.
Meis is scheduled for sentencing on July 14, 2025 by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston. He could face up to a year in prison along with a $100,000 fine; however, his final sentence will be determined based on statutory factors and Federal Sentencing Guidelines which consider multiple variables.
