Changing Healthcare, Changing Lives. Creating Affordable Peace of Mind, One Family at a Time.
Healthcare is a human right as it secures every single person’s right to live; denying rea-sonable and competent care when a person needs it is equivalent to threatening their life. Moreover, reducing someone’s existence to whether or not they can pay to preserve it must finally end. That is why we provide the opportunity for everyone to access the care they need, exactly.
These Policies and Procedures, the Consultant Terms and Conditions and the Con-sultant Compensation Plan, in their present form and as amended by MD Global, LLC (hereafter “MDG” or the “Company”), are incorporated into and, as amended by MDG from time to time, constitute the entire agreement (hereafter “the Agreement”) between MDG and its Healthcare Consultants (hereafter “HCs”). It is the responsibility of each HC to read, understand, adhere to, and insure that they are aware of and operating under the most current version of these Policies and Procedures.
MDG reserves the right to amend the Agreement and its prices in its sole discretion. By executing the Agreement, an HC agrees to abide by all amendments or modifications that MDG elects to make. Amendments shall be effective fifteen (15) days after publica-tion of notice that the Agreement has been modified. Amendments shall not apply retro-actively to conduct that occurred prior to the effective date of the amendment. Notifica-tion of amendments shall be published by email to all HCs.
If any provision of the Agreement, in its current form or as may be amended, is found to be invalid, or unenforceable for any reason, only the invalid portion(s) of the provision shall be severed and the remaining terms and provisions shall remain in full force and effect. The severed provision, or portion thereof, shall be reformed to reflect the purpose of the provision as closely as possible.
The Company never gives up its right to insist on compliance with the Agreement and with the applicable laws governing the conduct of a business. No failure of MGD to ex-ercise any right or power under the Agreement or to insist upon strict compliance by an HC with any obligation or provision of the Agreement, and no custom or practice of the parties at variance with the terms of the Agreement, shall constitute a waiver of MDG’s right to demand compliance with the Agreement.
To become an MDG Consultant an applicant must:
MDG reserves the right to accept or reject any HC Application and Agreement in its sole discretion.
In addition to the payment of $99.95, each Consultant shall pay a monthly fee of $9.95 for their self-replicated website. No membership purchase is required to become or remain an HC.
Once a Healthcare Consultant’s Application and Agreement has been accepted by MDG, the benefits of the Compensation Plan and the HC Agreement are available to the new HC. These benefits include the right to:
The term of the HC Agreement is one year from the date of its acceptance by MDG. HCs must renew this Agreement each year by paying an annual renewal fee of $24.95 on or before the anniversary date of this Agreement. If the renewal fee is not paid within 30 days after the expiration of the current term of this Agreement, this Agreement will be canceled. The renewal fee will be automatically charged to the HC’s credit card/bank ac-count on file with the Company.
HCs must adhere to the terms of the MDG Compensation Plan. An HC shall not of-fer the HC opportunity of membership through, or in combination with, any other system, program, sales tools, or method of marketing other than that specifically set forth in offi-cial MDG website An HC shall not require or encourage other current or prospective Members or HCs to execute any agreement or contract other than official MDG agree-ments and contracts in order to become an MDG member or Healthcare Consultant. An HC shall not require or encourage other current or prospective Member or HC to make any purchase from, or payment to, any individual or other entity to participate in or in connection with the MDG Compensation Plan other than those purchases or payments identified as recommended or required on the official MDG website.
An HC shall safeguard and promote the good reputation of MDG and its membership. The marketing and promotion of the MDG opportunity and membership must avoid all discourteous, deceptive, misleading, unethical or immoral conduct or practices.
To promote both the HC position and the MDG membership An HC must use the sales aids, business tools, and support materials produced by MDG. The Company has carefully designed its promotional materials and website to ensure that they are promoted in a fair and truthful manner, that they are substantiated, and the materials comply with the legal requirements of federal and state laws.
Accordingly, An HC must not produce or use the literature, advertisements, sales aids, business tools, promotional materials or Internet web pages created by themselves or by third parties.
The names and marks of and related to “MD Global”, “MD Global Hotline” and “MDG” and all other names and marks used by MDG are exclusively owned by MDG or its licensors. An HC shall neither have nor claim an interest in such names and marks and is licensed to use the names and marks while an HC and as directed by MDG.
The content of all Company sponsored events is copyrighted material. An HC may not produce for sale or distribution any recorded Company events and speeches without prior written permission from MDG, nor may an HC reproduce for sale or for personal use any recording of Company-produ1ced audio or video tape presentations.
As an independent HC, you may use the MD Global name in the following manner:
HC’s Name
Independent MDG Healthcare Consultant
Example:
Alice Smith
Independent MDG Healthcare Consultant
An HC may not use the names “MD Global” or “MDG” in any form in your team name, a tagline, an external website name, your personal website address or extension, in an e-mail address, as a personal name, or as a nickname. Additionally, only use the phrase Independent MD Global Consultant in your phone greeting or on your answering machine to clearly separate your independent HC business from MDG. For example, you may not secure or use the domain name www.buymdglobal.com, nor may you create an email address such as mdglobal.com/sales@hotmail.com.
If you use a MDG logo in any communication, you must use the Independent Consultant version of the MDG logo. Using any other MDG logo requires the prior written approval of MDG. Please see examples below:
An HC must not attempt to respond to media inquiries regarding MDG, its products or services, or their independent HC business. All inquiries by any type of media must be immediately referred to MDG’s Compliance De-partment. This policy is designed to assure that accurate and consistent in-formation is provided to the public as well as to maintain a proper public im-age.
MDG does not permit its HCs to send unsolicited commercial emails unless such emails strictly comply with applicable laws and regulations including, without limitation, the federal CAN SPAM Act. Any email sent by an HC that promotes MDG, the MDG opportunity, or MDG products and services must comply with the following:
MDG may periodically send commercial emails on behalf of HCs. By entering into the HC Agreement, HC agrees that the Company may send such emails and that the HC’s physical and email addresses will be included in such emails as outlined above. HCs shall honor opt-out requests generated as a result of such emails sent by the Company.
Except as provided in this section, HCs may not use or transmit unsolicited faxes in connection with their MDG business. The term "unsolicited faxes" means the transmis-sion via telephone facsimile or computer of any material or information advertising or promoting MDG, its products, its compensation plan or any other aspect of the company which is transmitted to any person, except that these terms do not include a fax: (a) to any person with that person's prior express invitation or permission; or (b) to any person with whom the HC has an established business or personal relationship.
The term "established business or personal relationship" means a prior or existing re-lationship formed by a voluntary two way communication between an HC and a person, on the basis of: (a) an inquiry, application, purchase or transaction by the person regarding products offered by such HC; or (b) a personal or familial relationship, which relationship has not been previously terminated by either party.
HCs may list themselves as an “Independent MDG Healthcare Consultant” in the white or yellow pages of the telephone directory, or with online directories, under their own name. No HC may place telephone or online directory display ads using MDG's name or logo. HCs may not answer the telephone by saying “MDG”, “MDG Incorpo-rated”, or in any other manner that would lead the caller to believe that he or she has reached corporate offices of MDG. If an HC wishes to post his/her name in a telephone or online directory, it must be listed in the following format:
HC's Name
Independent MDG Healthcare Consultant
HCs may not advertise on television and radio except with MDG’s express writ-ten approval.
HCs are provided with a replicated website by MDG, from which they can take or-ders, enroll new HCs, and enroll Members, as well as manage their MDG business. HCs may use only replicated websites provided by MDG to promote their MDG business, and may not create their own websites to directly or indirectly promote MDG’s products, ser-vices, or the MDG opportunity.
When directing readers to your Replicated Website it must be evident from a combi-nation of the link, and the surrounding context, to a reasonable reader that the link will be resolving to the site of an independent MDG HC. Attempts to mislead web traffic into believing they are going to a MDG corporate site, when in fact they land at an HC site, will not be allowed. The determination as to what is misleading or what constitutes a rea-sonable reader will be at MDG’s sole discretion.
HCs may not monetize their Replicated Website through HC programs, ad Sense or similar programs.
You may use online classifieds (including Craigslist) for prospecting, recruiting, sponsoring and informing the public about the MDG business opportunity, provided MDG provided templates/images are used. These templates will identify you as an Inde-pendent MDG HC. If a link or URL is provided, it must link to your Replicated Webs
You may place banner advertisements on a website provided you use MDG-provided templates and images. All banner advertisements must link to your Replicated Website. HCs may not use blind ads (ads that do not disclose the identity of the Company) or web pages that make product or income claims that are ultimately associated with MDG prod-ucts or the MDG opportunity.
Spam linking is defined as multiple consecutive submissions of the same or similar content into blogs, wikis, guest books, websites or other publicly accessible online dis-cussion boards or forums and is not allowed. This includes blog spamming, blog comment spamming and/or spamdexing. Any comments you make on blogs, forums, guest books, etc., must be unique, informative and relevant.
HCs may not upload, submit or publish MDG-related video, audio or photo content that they develop and create, but must use only such materials as provided by MDG. HCs may not upload, submit or publish any content (video, audio, presentations or any com-puter files) received from MDG or captured at official MDG events or in buildings owned or operated by MDG without prior written permission.
Sponsored links or pay-per-click ads (PPC) are acceptable. The destination URL must be to the sponsoring HC’s Replicated Website, and must not portray any URL that could lead the user to believe they are being directed to a MDG Corporate site, or be inappro-priate or misleading in any way.
HCs may not use or attempt to register any of MDG’s trade names, trademarks, ser-vice names, service marks, product names, the Company’s name, or any derivative of the foregoing, for any Internet domain name, email address, or social media name or address.
In addition to meeting all other requirements specified in these Policies and Proce-dures, should an HC utilize any form of social media, including but not limited to Face-book, Twitter, Linkedin, YouTube, or Pinterest, the HC agrees to each of the following:
If an HC creates a business profile page on any social media site that promotes or re-lates to MDG, its products, or opportunity, the business profile page must relate exclu-sively to the HC’s MDG business and MDG products. If the HC’s MDG business is can-celled for any reason or if the HC becomes inactive, the HC must deactivate the business profile page.
A corporation, limited liability company, partnership or trust (collectively referred to in this section as a “Business Entity”) may apply to be a MDG HC by submitting an HC Application and Agreement along with a properly completed Business Entity Application and Agreement and a properly completed IRS form W-9. The Business Entity, as well as all shareholders, members, managers, partners, trustees, or other parties with any owner-ship interest in, or management responsibilities for, the Business Entity (collectively “HC Parties”) are individually, jointly and severally liable for any indebtedness to MDG, compliance with the MDG Policies and Procedures, the MDG HC Agreement, and other obligations to MDG.
To prevent the circumvention of Sections 4.23 (regarding transfers and assignments of an MDG business) and 4.5, (regarding Sponsorship Changes), if any HC Party wants to terminate his or her relationship with the Business Entity or MDG, the HC Party must terminate his or her affiliation with the Business Entity, notify MDG in writing that he or she has terminated his/her affiliation with the Business Entity, and must comply with the provisions of Section 4.23. In addition, the HC Party foregoing their interest in the Busi-ness Entity may not participate in any other MDG business for six consecutive calendar months in accordance with Section 4.5.3. If the Business Entity wishes to bring on any new HC Party, it must adhere to the requirements of Section 4.23.
The modifications permitted within the scope of this paragraph do not include a change of sponsorship. Changes of sponsorship are addressed in Section 4.5, below. The MDG may, at its discretion, require notarized documents before implementing any changes to an MDG business. Please allow thirty (30) days after the receipt of the re-quest by MDG for processing.
Each HC must immediately notify MDG of all changes to type of business entity they utilize in operating their businesses and the addition or removal of business HC Parties.
MDG strongly prohibits changes in sponsorship. Accordingly, the transfer of an MDG business from one sponsor to another is rarely permitted. Requests for change of sponsorship must be submitted in writing to the HC Services Department, and must in-clude the reason for the transfer. Transfers will only be considered in the following three circumstances:
In cases in which the new HC is sponsored by someone other than the individual he or she was led to believe would be his or her Sponsor, an HC may request that he or she be transferred to another organization with his or her entire marketing organization intact. Requests for transfer under this policy will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and must be made within three days from the date of enrollment. The HC requesting the change has the burden of proving that he or she was placed beneath the wrong sponsor. It is up to MDG’s discretion whether the requested change will be implemented.
An HC may legitimately change organizations by voluntarily canceling his or her MDG business and remaining inactive (i.e., no purchases of MDG products for resale, no sales of MDG products, no sponsoring, no attendance at any MDG functions, participa-tion in any other form of HC activity, or operation of any other MDG business, no in-come from the MDG business) for six (6) full calendar months. Following the six month period of inactivity, the former HC may reapply under a new sponsor, however, the for-mer HC’s downline will remain in their original line of sponsorship.
In cases in which the appropriate sponsorship change procedures have not been fol-lowed, and a downline organization has been developed in the second business developed by an HC, MDG reserves the sole and exclusive right to determine the final disposition of the downline organization. Resolving conflicts over the proper placement of a downline that has developed under an organization that has improperly switched sponsors is often extremely difficult. Therefore, HCS WAIVE ANY AND ALL CLAIMS AGAINST MDG, ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, OWNERS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS THAT RELATE TO OR ARISE FROM MDG’S DECISION REGARDING THE DISPOSITION OF ANY DOWNLINE ORGANIZATION THAT DEVELOPS BELOW AN ORGANIZATION THAT HAS IMPROPERLY CHANGED LINES OF SPONSORSHIP.
An HC is fully responsible for all of his or her verbal and written statements made re-garding MDG products, services, and the Compensation Plan that are not expressly con-tained in official MDG materials. This includes statements and representations made through all sources of communication media, whether person-to-person, in meetings, online, through Social Media, in print, or any other means of communication. HCs agree to indemnify MDG and MDG’s directors, officers, employees, and agents, and hold them harmless from all liability including judgments, civil penalties, refunds, attorney fees, court costs, or lost business incurred by MDG as a result of the HC’s unauthorized repre-sentations or actions. This provision shall survive the termination of the HC Agreement.
When presenting or discussing the MDG Compensation Plan, you must make it clear to prospects that financial success with MDG requires commitment, effort, and sales to non-HCs. Conversely, you must never represent that one can be successful without dili-gently applying themselves. Examples of misrepresentations in this area include:
The above are just examples of improper representations about the Compensation Plan. It is important that you do not make these or any other representations that could lead a prospect to believe that they can be successful as a MDG HC without commitment, effort and sales to non HCs.
An HC, when presenting or discussing the MDG opportunity or Compensation Plan to a prospective HC, may not make income projections, income claims, or disclose his or her MDG income (including, but not limited to, the showing of checks, copies of checks, bank statements, or tax records.
To comply with Canadian law MGD will, beginning March 31, 2015 and every calen-dar quarter thereafter, publish the MDG Income Disclosure Statement (“IDS”). The MDG IDS is designed to convey truthful, timely and comprehensive information regard-ing the income that MDG HCs actually earn. In order to accomplish this objective, a copy of the current IDS, when available in each HC’s back office, must be presented to all pro-spective HCs. The failure to comply with this policy constitutes a significant and material breach of the MDG HC Agreement and will be grounds for disciplinary sanctions, in-cluding termination, pursuant to Section 9.1.
A copy of the IDS must be presented to a prospective HC (someone who is not a par-ty to a current MDG HC Agreement) anytime the Compensation Plan is presented or dis-cussed, or any type of income claim or earnings representation is made.
The terms “income claim” and/or “earnings representation” (collectively “income claim”) include: (1) statements of actual earnings, (2) statements of projected earnings, (3) statements of earnings ranges, (4) income testimonials, (5) lifestyle claims, and (6) hypothetical claims.
A lifestyle income claim typically includes statements (or pictures) involving large homes, luxury cars, exotic vacations, or other items suggesting or implying wealth. They also consist of references to the achievement of one's dreams, having everything one al-ways wanted, and are phrased in terms of “opportunity” or “possibility” or “chance.”
Claims such as “My MDG income exceeded my salary after six months in the busi-ness,” or “Our MDG business has allowed my wife to come home and be a full-time mom” also fall within the purview of “lifestyle” claims.
A hypothetical income claim exists when you attempt to explain the operation of the compensation plan through the use of a hypothetical example. Certain assumptions are made regarding some or all of the following: (1) number of personally-enrolled Members and HCs; (2) number of downline Members and HCs; (3) average sales/purchase vol-ume/sales volume per Member and HC; and (4) total organizational volume. Applying these assumptions through the compensation plan yields income figures which constitute hypothetical income claims.
In any non-public meeting (e.g., a home meeting, one-on-one, regardless of venue) with a prospective HC or HCs in which the Compensation Plan is discussed or any type of income claim is made, you must provide the prospect(s) with a copy of the IDS. In any meeting that is open to the public in which the Compensation Plan is discussed or any type of income claims is made, you must provide every prospective HC with a copy of the IDS and you must display at least one (3 foot x 5 foot poster board) in the front of the room in reasonably close proximity to the presenter(s). In any meeting in which any type of video display is utilized (e.g., monitor, television, projector, etc.) a slide of the IDS must be displayed continuously throughout the duration of any discussion of the Compensation Plan or the making of an income claim.
HCs may not sell MDG memberships from a commercial outlet, nor may HCs display or sell MDG literature in any retail or service establishment. Online auction and/or sales facilitation websites, including but not limited to eBay and Craig’s List constitute Com-mercial Outlets, and may not be used to sell MDG memberships
HCs may display and/or sell MDG memberships at trade shows and professional ex-positions. Before submitting a deposit to the event promoter, HCs must contact the HC Services department in writing for conditional approval, as MDG’s policy is to authorize only one MDG business per event. Final approval will be granted to the first HC who submits an official advertisement of the event, a copy of the contract signed by both the HC and the event official, and a receipt indicating that a deposit for the booth has been paid. Approval is given only for the event specified. Any requests to participate in future events must again be submitted to the Compliance Department. MDG further reserves the right to refuse authorization to participate at any function which it does not deem a suitable forum for the promotion of its products, services, or the MDG opportunity. Ap-proval will not be given for swap meets, garage sales, flea markets or farmer’s markets as these events are not conducive to the professional image MDG wishes to portray
MDG HCs are free to participate in other multilevel or network marketing business ventures or marketing opportunities (collectively “network marketing”). However, during the term of this Agreement, HCs may not directly or indirectly recruit other MDG HCs or Members for or to any other network marketing business.
Following the cancellation of an HC’s Independent HC Agreement, and for a period of six calendar months thereafter, with the exception of an HC who is personally spon-sored by the former HC, a former HC may not recruit any MDG HC or Member for an-other network marketing business. HCs and the Company recognize that because net-work marketing is conducted through networks of independent contractors dispersed across the entire United States and internationally, and business is commonly conducted via the internet and telephone, an effort to narrowly limit the geographic scope of this non-solicitation provision would render it wholly ineffective. Therefore, HCs and MDG agree that this non-solicitation provision shall apply nationwide and to all international markets in which HCs are located. This provision shall survive the termination or expira-tion of the HC Agreement.
The term “Recruit” means the actual or attempted sponsorship, solicitation, enroll-ment, encouragement, or effort to influence in any other way, either directly, indirectly, or through a third party, another MDG HC or Member to enroll or participate in another multilevel marketing, network marketing or direct sales opportunity.
If an HC is engaged in other non-MDG direct selling programs, it is the responsibility of the HC to ensure that his or her MDG business is operated entirely separate and apart from any other program. To this end, the following must be adhered to:
“Confidential Information” includes, but is not limited to, Downline Genealogy Re-ports, the identities and data relating to MDG Members and HCs, contact information of MDG Members and HCs, HCs’ personal and group sales volumes, and HC rank and/or achievement levels. Confidential Information is, or may be available, to HCs in their re-spective back-offices. HC access to such Confidential Information is password protected, and is confidential and constitutes proprietary information and business trade secrets belonging to MDG. Such Confidential Information is provided to HCs in strictest confidence and is made available to HCs for the sole purpose of assisting HCs in working with their respective downline organizations in the development of their MDG business. HCs may not use the reports for any purpose other than for developing their MDG business. HCs should use the Confidential Information to assist, motivate, and train their downline HCs. The HC and MDG agree that, but for this agreement of confidentiality and nondisclosure, MDG would not provide Confidential Information to the HC.
To protect the Confidential Information, HCs shall not, on his or her own behalf, or on behalf of any other person, partnership, association, corporation or other entity:
The obligation not to disclose Confidential Information shall survive cancellation or ter-mination of the Agreement, and shall remain effective and binding irrespective of wheth-er an HC’s Agreement has been terminated, or whether the HC is or is not otherwise an HC with the Company.
MDG does not condone HCs specifically or consciously targeting the sales force of another direct sales company to sell MDG products or to become HCs for MDG, nor does MDG condone HCs solicitation or enticement of members of the sales force of another direct sales company to violate the terms of their contract with such other company. Should HCs engage in such activity, they bear the risk of being sued by the other direct sales company. If any lawsuit, arbitration or mediation is brought against an HC alleging that he or she engaged in inappropriate recruiting activity of its sales force or Members, MDG will not pay any of the HC’s defense costs or legal fees, nor will MDG indemnify the HC for any judgment, award, or settlement.
If an HC has questions about or believes any errors have been made regarding com-missions, bonuses, genealogy lists, or charges, the HC must notify MDG in writing within 60 days of the date of the purported error or incident in question. MDG will not be responsible for any errors, omissions or problems not reported to the Company within 60 days.
Neither federal or state regulatory agencies nor officials approve or endorse any direct selling or network marketing companies or programs. Therefore, HCs shall not represent or imply that MDG or its Compensation Plan have been "approved," "endorsed" or oth-erwise sanctioned by any government agency.
HCs must not manipulate enrollments of new applicants and purchases of products. All HC Applications and Agreements, and product orders must be sent to MDG within 72 hours from the time they are signed by an HC or placed by a Member, respectively.
Each HC is responsible for paying local, state/provincial, and federal taxes on any in-come generated as an Independent HC. Unfortunately, we cannot provide you with any personal tax advice. Please consult your own tax accountant, tax attorney, or other tax professional. If an HC’s MDG business is tax exempt, the Federal tax identification number must be provided to MDG. Every year, MDG will provide an IRS Form 1099 MISC (Non-employee Compensation) earnings statement to each U.S. resident who: 1. Had earnings of over $600 in the previous calendar year; or 2. Made purchases during the previous calendar year in excess of $5,000.
HCs are independent contractors. MDG does not direct or control the activities of its HCs. The agreement between MDG and its HCs does not create an employer/employee relationship, agency, partnership, or joint venture between the Company and the HC. HCs shall not be treated as an employee for his or her services or for Federal or State tax pur-poses. All HCs are responsible for paying local, state, and federal taxes due from all compensation earned as an HC of the Company. The HC has no authority (expressed or implied), to bind the Company to any obligation. Each HC shall establish his or her own goals, hours, and methods of sale, so long as he or she complies with the terms of the HC Agreement, these Policies and Procedures, and applicable laws.
You may wish to arrange insurance coverage for your business. Your homeowner’s insurance policy does not cover business-related injuries, or the theft of or damage to in-ventory or business equipment. Contact your insurance agent to make certain that your business property is protected. This can often be accomplished with a simple “Business Pursuit” endorsement attached to your present home owner’s policy.
HCs are authorized to sell MDG products and services, and enroll Members or HCs only in the countries in which MDG is authorized to conduct business, as announced in official Company literature. MDG products or sales aids may not be shipped into or sold in any foreign country. HCs may sell, give, transfer, or distribute MDG products or sales aids only in their home country. In addition, no HC may, in any unauthorized country: (a) conduct sales, enrollment or training meetings; (b) enroll or attempt to enroll potential Members or HCs; or (c) conduct any other activity for the purpose of selling MDG prod-ucts, establishing a marketing organization, or promoting the MDG opportunity.
HCs shall comply with all federal, state, and local laws and regulations in the conduct of their businesses. Many cities and counties have laws regulating certain home-based businesses. In most cases these ordinances are not applicable to HCs because of the na-ture of their business. However, HCs must obey those laws that do apply to them.
If a city or county official tells an HC that an ordinance applies to him or her, the HC shall be polite and cooperative, and immediately send a copy of the ordinance to the Compliance Department of MDG.
An HC may operate or have an ownership interest, legal or equitable, as a sole pro-prietorship, partner, shareholder, trustee, or beneficiary, in only one MDG business. No individual may have, operate or receive compensation from more than one MDG business. Individuals of the same Household may not enter into or have an interest in more than one MDG Business. A “Household” is defined as spouses, and dependent children living at or doing business at the same address.
In order to maintain the integrity of the MDG Compensation Plan, husbands and wives or common-law couples (collectively “spouses”) who wish to become MDG HCs must be jointly sponsored as one MDG business. Spouses, regardless of whether one or both are signatories to the HC Application and Agreement, may not own or operate any other MDG business, either individually or jointly, nor may they participate directly or indirectly (as a shareholder, partner, trustee, trust beneficiary, or have any other legal or equitable ownership) in the ownership or management of another MDG business in any form.
An exception to the one business per HC/household rule will be considered on a case by case basis if two HCs marry or in cases of an HC receiving an interest in another busi-ness through inheritance. Requests for exceptions to policy must be submitted in writing to the Compliance Department.
If any member of an HC’s immediate household engages in any activity which, if per-formed by the HC, would violate any provision of the Agreement, such activity will be deemed a violation by the HC and MDG may take disciplinary action pursuant to the Statement of Policies against the HC. Similarly, if any individual associated in any way with a corporation, partnership, LLC, trust or other entity (collectively “Business Entity”) violates the Agreement, such action(s) will be deemed a violation by the Business Entity, and MDG may take disciplinary action against the Business Entity. Likewise, if an HC enrolls in MDG as a Business Entity, each HC Party of the Business Entity shall be per-sonally and individually bound to, and must comply with, the terms and conditions of the Agreement.
Any request from an HC for copies of invoices, applications, downline activity re-ports, or other records will require a fee of $1.00 per page per copy. This fee covers the expense of mailing and time required to research files and make copies of the records.
When a vacancy occurs in a Marketing Organization due to the termination of a MDG business, any HC in the upline of the terminated HC may place a newly sponsored HC in the vacant HC position.
Although a MDG business is a privately owned and independently operated business, the sale, transfer or assignment of a MDG business, and the sale, transfer, or assignment of an interest in a Business Entity that owns or operates a MDG business, is subject to certain limitations. If an HC wishes to sell his or her MDG business, or interest in a Business Entity that owns or operates a MDG business, the following criteria must be met:
Prior to selling an independent MDG business or Business Entity interest, the selling HC must notify MDG’s Compliance Department in writing and advise of his or her intent to sell his/her MDG business or Business Entity interest. The selling HC must also receive written approval from the Compliance Department before proceeding with the sale. No changes in line of sponsorship can result from the sale or transfer of a MDG business.
MDG HCs sometimes operate their MDG businesses as husband-wife partnerships, regular partnerships, limited liability companies, corporations, trusts, or other Business Entities. At such time as a marriage may end in divorce or a corporation, LLC, partner-ship, trust or other Business Entity may dissolve, arrangements must be made to assure that any separation or division of the business is accomplished so as not to adversely af-fect the interests and income of other businesses up or down the line of sponsorship.
During the divorce or entity dissolution process, the parties must adopt one of the fol-lowing methods of operation:
Under no circumstances will the Downline Organization of divorcing spouses or a dissolving business entity be divided. Similarly, under no circumstances will MDG split commission and bonus checks between divorcing spouses or members of dissolving enti-ties. MDG will recognize only one Downline Organization and will issue only one commission check per MDG business per commission cycle. Commission checks shall always be issued to the same individual or entity who/which received the commission check prior to any separation, subject to any court order or the mutual written and nota-rized agreement of the separated parties.
If a former spouse has completely relinquished all rights in the original MDG business pursuant to a divorce, he or she is thereafter free to enroll under any sponsor of his or her choosing without waiting six calendar months. In the case of business entity dissolutions, the former partner, shareholder, member, or other entity HC who retains no interest in the business must wait six calendar months from the date of the final dissolution before re-enrolling as an HC. In either case, the former spouse or business HC shall have no rights to any HCs in their former organization or to any former retail Member. They must develop the new business in the same manner as would any other new HC.
When sponsoring a new HC through the online enrollment process, the sponsor may assist the new applicant in filling out the enrollment materials. However, the applicant must be present and personally review and agree to the online application and agreement, MDG’s Policies and Procedures, and the MDG Compensation Plan. The sponsor may not fill out the online application and agreement on behalf of the applicant and agree to these materials on behalf of the applicant.
Upon the death or incapacitation of an HC, his or her business may be passed to his or her heirs. Appropriate legal documentation must be submitted to the Company to ensure the transfer is proper. Accordingly, an HC should consult an attorney to assist him or her in the preparation of a will or other testamentary instrument. Whenever an MDG business is transferred by a will or other testamentary process, the beneficiary acquires the right to collect all bonuses and commissions of the deceased HC’s marketing organization provided the following qualifications are met. The successor(s) must:
To effect a testamentary transfer of an MDG business, the executor of the estate must provide the following to MDG: (1) an original death certificate; (2) certified letters tes-tamentary or a letter of administration appointing an executor; and (3) written instructions from the authorized executor to MDG specifying to whom the business and income should be transferred.
To effectuate a transfer of an MDG business because of incapacity, the successor must provide the following to MDG: (1) a notarized copy of an appointment as trustee; (2) a notarized copy of the trust document or other documentation establishing the trus-tee’s right to administer the MDG business; and (3) a completed HC Agreement executed by the trustee.
The Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission each have laws that restrict telemarketing practices. Both federal agencies (as well as a number of states) have “do not call” regulations as part of their telemarketing laws. Although MDG does not consider HCs to be “telemarketers” in the traditional sense of the word, these government regulations broadly define the term “telemarketer” and “telemarketing” so that your inadvertent action of calling someone whose telephone number is listed on the federal “do not call” registry could cause you to violate the law. Moreover, these regulations must not be taken lightly, as they carry significant penalty.
Therefore, HCs must not engage in telemarketing in the operation of their MDG businesses. The term “telemarketing” means the placing of one or more telephone calls to an individual or entity to induce the purchase of a MDG product or service, or to recruit them for the MDG opportunity. “Cold calls" made to prospective Members or HCs that promote either MDG’s products or services or the MDG opportunity constitute tele-marketing and are prohibited. However, a telephone call(s) placed to a prospective Member or HC (a "prospect") is permissible under the following situations:
MDG makes online back offices available to its HCs. Back offices provide HCs ac-cess to confidential and proprietary information that may be used solely and exclusively to promote the development of an HC’s MDG business and to increase sales of MDG products. However, access to a back office is a privilege, and not a right.
To ensure timely delivery of products, support materials, commission, and tax docu-ments, it is important that the MDG’s files are current. Street addresses are required for shipping since UPS cannot deliver to a post office box. HCs planning to change their e-mail address or move must send their new address and telephone numbers to MDG’s Corporate Offices to the attention of the HC Services Department. To guarantee proper delivery, two weeks advance notice must be provided to MDG on all changes. An HC whose contact information changes may amend their contact information through their HC Back Office.
Any HC who sponsors another HC into MDG must perform a bona fide assistance and training function to ensure that his or her personally sponsored HCs are properly op-erating his or her MDG business. HCs must have ongoing contact and communication with the HCs in their Downline Organizations. Examples of such contact and communi-cation may include, but are not limited to: newsletters, written correspondence, personal meetings, telephone contact, voice mail, electronic mail, and the accompaniment of downline HCs to MDG meetings, training sessions, and other functions. Upline HCs are also responsible to motivate and train new HCs in MDG product knowledge, effective sales techniques, the MDG Compensation Plan, and compliance with Company Policies and Procedures and applicable laws. Communication with and the training of downline HCs must not, however, violate Sections 4.1 and/or 4.2 (regarding the development of HC-produced sales aids and promotional materials).
HCs should monitor the HCs in their Downline Organizations to guard against down-line HCs making improper product or business claims, violation of the Policies and Pro-cedures, or engaging in any illegal or inappropriate conduct.
As HCs progress through the various levels of leadership, they will become more ex-perienced in sales techniques, product knowledge, and understanding of the MDG pro-gram. They may be called upon to share this knowledge with lesser experienced HCs within their organization.
Regardless of their level of achievement, HCs have an ongoing obligation to continue to personally promote sales through the generation of new HCs and through assisting their existing HCs.
MDG wants to provide its independent HCs with the best products, compensation plan, and service in the industry. Accordingly, we value your constructive criticisms and comments. All such comments should be submitted in writing to the HC Services De-partment. Remember, to best serve you, we must hear from you! While MDG welcomes constructive input, negative comments and remarks made in the field by HCs about the Company, its products, or compensation plan serve no purpose other than to sour the en-thusiasm of other MDG HCs. For this reason, and to set the proper example for their downline, HCs must not disparage, demean, or make negative remarks about MDG, other MDG HCs, MDG’s products, the Marketing and Compensation plan, or MDG’s direc-tors, officers, or employees.
HCs must provide the most current version of the Policies and Procedures and the Compensation Plan to individuals whom they are sponsoring to become HCs before the applicant signs an HC Agreement, or ensure that they have online access to these materi-als.
There are no exclusive territories granted to anyone.
An HC must be active and in compliance with the Agreement to qualify for bonuses and commissions. So long as an HC complies with the terms of the Agreement, MDG shall pay commissions to such HC in accordance with the Marketing and Compensation plan. The minimum amount for which MDG will issue a commission is $10.00. If an HC’s bonuses and commissions do not equal or exceed $10.00, the Company will accrue the commissions and bonuses until they total $10.00. Payment will be issued once $10.00 has been accrued. Notwithstanding the foregoing, all commissions owed an HC, regardless of the amount accrued, will be paid at the end of each fiscal year or upon the termination of an HC’s business.
HCs receive bonuses, commissions, or overrides based on the actual sales of products and services to end consumers. When a service is cancelled or a product is returned to MDG for a refund or is repurchased by the Company, any of the following may occur at the Company’s discretion: (1) the bonuses, commissions, or overrides attributable to the returned or repurchased product(s) or cancelled service will be deducted from payments to the HC and upline HCs who received bonuses, commissions, or overrides on the sales of the refunded product(s) or cancelled service, in the month in which the refund is given, and continuing every pay period thereafter until the commission is recovered; (2) the HC or upline HCs who earned bonuses, commissions, or overrides based on the sale of the returned product(s) or cancelled service will have the corresponding points deducted from their Group Volume in the next month and all subsequent months until it is com-pletely recovered; or (3) the bonuses, commissions, or overrides attributable to the re-turned or repurchased product(s) or cancelled service may be deducted from any refunds or credits to the HC who received the bonuses, commissions, or overrides on the sales of the refunded product(s) or cancelled service.
The Company pays commissions via direct deposit into HCs’ bank accounts or via direct payment onto a Company provided debit card. An HC may also request a hard-copy. The Company will deduct a $5.00 processing fee from each hard-copy commission check issued.
If an HC fails to submit a W-9 form, MDG will deduct the necessary withholdings from the HC’s commission checks as required by law.
All information provided by MDG in downline activity reports, including but not lim-ited to personal and group sales volume (or any part thereof), and downline sponsoring activity is believed to be accurate and reliable. Nevertheless, due to various factors in-cluding but not limited to the inherent possibility of human, digital, and mechanical error; the accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of orders; denial of credit card and electronic check payments; returned products; credit card and electronic check charge-backs; the information is not guaranteed by MDG or any persons creating or transmitting the infor-mation.
ALL PERSONAL AND GROUP SALES VOLUME INFORMATION IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, OR REPRESENTATIONS OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER. IN PARTICULAR BUT WITHOUT LIMITATION THERE SHALL BE NO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE, OR NON INFRINGEMENT.
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, MDG AND/OR OTHER PERSONS CREATING OR TRANSMITTING THE INFOR-MATION WILL IN NO EVENT BE LIABLE TO ANY HC OR ANYONE ELSE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES THAT ARISE OUT OF THE USE OF OR ACCESS TO PERSONAL AND/OR GROUP SALES VOLUME INFORMATION (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOST PROFITS, BONUSES, OR COMMISSIONS, LOSS OF OPPORTUNITY, AND DAMAGES THAT MAY RESULT FROM INACCURACY, INCOMPLETENESS, INCONVENIENCE, DELAY, OR LOSS OF THE USE OF THE INFORMATION), EVEN IF MDG OR OTHER PERSONS CREATING OR TRANSMITTING THE INFORMATION SHALL HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, MDG OR OTHER PERSONS CREATING OR TRANSMITTING THE INFORMATION SHALL HAVE NO RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY TO YOU OR ANYONE ELSE UNDER ANY TORT, CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, PRODUCTS LIABILITY OR OTHER THEORY WITH RESPECT TO ANY SUBJECT MATTER OF THIS AGREEMENT OR TERMS AND CONDITIONS RELATED THERETO.
Access to and use of MDG’ online and telephone reporting services and your reliance upon such information is at your own risk. All such information is provided to you "as is". If you are dissatisfied with the accuracy or quality of the information, your sole and exclusive remedy is to discontinue use of and access to MDG’ online and telephone re-porting services and your reliance upon the information.
An HC may return sales aids that he or she personally purchased from MDG (pur-chases from other HCs or third parties are not subject to refund) which have been pur-chased within one year prior to the date of refund request. Upon receipt of sales aids, the HC will be reimbursed 100% of the net cost of the original purchase price(s). The ship-ping and handling charges incurred by an HC when sales aids were purchased and return shipping fees, will not be refunded. If the purchases were made through a credit card, the refund will be credited back to the same credit card account.
Violation of the Agreement, these Policies and Procedures, violation of any com-mon law duty, including but not limited to any applicable duty of loyalty, any illegal, fraudulent, deceptive or unethical business conduct, or any act or omission by an HC that, in the sole discretion of the Company may damage its reputation or goodwill (such dam-aging act or omission need not be related to the HC’s MDG business), may result, at MDG's discretion, in one or more of the following corrective measures:
In the event a dispute arises between an HC and MDG, such dispute shall be exclu-sively resolved pursuant to the procedures set forth in Sections 9.3 through 9.5 of these Policies and Procedures.
Prior to instituting an arbitration, the parties shall meet in good faith and attempt to resolve any dispute arising from or relating to the Agreement through non-binding media-tion through the American Arbitration Association One individual who is mutually ac-ceptable to the parties shall be appointed as mediator. The mediation shall occur within 30 days from the date on which the mediator is appointed. The mediator’s fees and costs, as well as the costs of holding and conducting the mediation, shall be divided equally between the parties. Each party shall pay its portion of the anticipated shared fees and costs at least 10 days in advance of the mediation. Each party shall pay its own attorneys’ fees, costs, and individual expenses associated with conducting and attending the mediation. Mediation shall be held in the City of Austin, Texas and shall last no more than two business days.
If mediation is unsuccessful, any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to the Agreement, or the breach thereof, shall be settled by binding arbitration. The Parties waive all rights to trial by jury or to any court. The arbitration shall be filed with the American Arbitration Association and conducted under their under their respec-tive rules and procedures. The Commercial Arbitration Rules and Mediation Procedures of the AAA are available on the AAA’s website at www.adr.org.
Notwithstanding the rules of the AAA, the following shall apply to all Arbitration ac-tions:
All arbitration proceedings shall be held in Austin, Texas. There shall be one arbitra-tor. Each party to the arbitration shall be responsible for its own costs and expenses of arbitration, including legal and filing fees. The arbitration shall occur within 180 days from the date on which the arbitration is filed, and shall last no more than five business days. The parties shall be allotted equal time to present their respective cases. The deci-sion of the arbitrator shall be final and binding on the parties and may, if necessary, be reduced to a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction. This agreement to arbitrate shall survive the cancellation or termination of the Agreement.
The parties and the arbitrator shall maintain the confidentiality of the entire arbitration process and shall not disclose to any person not directly involved in the arbitration prose
Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in these Policies and Procedures shall prevent either party from applying to and obtaining from any court having jurisdiction a writ of attachment, a temporary injunction, preliminary injunction, permanent injunction or other relief available to safeguard and protect its intellectual property rights, and/or to enforce its rights under the non-solicitation provisions of this Agreement.
Jurisdiction and venue of any matter not subject to arbitration shall reside exclusively in Travis County, State of Texas. The law of the State of Texas shall govern all other matters relating to or arising from the Agreement.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, and the arbitration provision in Section 9, residents of the State of Louisiana shall be entitled to bring an arbiter in their home forum and pursu-ant to Louisiana law.
All checks returned by an HC’s bank for insufficient funds will be re-submitted for payment. A $25.00 returned check fee will be charged to the account of the HC. After receiving a returned check from a Member or an HC, all future orders must be paid by Credit Card, money order or cashier’s check. Any outstanding balance owed to MDG by an HC for NSF checks and returned check fees will be withheld from subsequent bonus and commission checks.
HCs shall not permit other HCs or Members to use his or her credit card, or permit debits to their checking accounts, to enroll or to make purchases from the Company.
MDG does not charge sales taxes on all purchases made by HCs and Members except upon sales aids purchased by residents of the state of Texas.
So long as an HC remains active and complies with the terms of the HC Agreement, including these Policies and Procedures, MDG shall pay commissions to such HC in ac-cordance with the Compensation Plan. An HC’s bonuses and commissions constitute the entire consideration for the HC's efforts in generating sales and all activities related to generating sales (including building a downline organization). Following an HC’s non-renewal of his or her HC Agreement, cancellation for inactivity, or voluntary or involun-tary cancellation of his or her HC Agreement (all of these methods are collectively re-ferred to as “cancellation”), the former HC shall have no right, title, claim or interest to the marketing organization which he or she operated, or any commission or bonus from the sales generated by the organization. An HC whose business is cancelled will lose all rights as an HC. This includes the right to sell MDG products and services and the right to receive future commissions, bonuses, or other income resulting from the sales and other activities of the HC’s former downline sales organization. In the event of cancellation, HCs agree to waive all rights they may have, including but not limited to property rights, to their former downline organization and to any future bonuses, commissions or other remuneration derived from the sales and other activities of his or her former downline organization, but shall receive all commissions and bonus earned through the date of cancellation.
Following an HC’s cancellation of his or her HC Agreement, the former HC shall not hold himself or herself out as an MDG HC and shall not have the right to sell MDG products or services.
If an HC fails to earn commissions and bonuses for 12 consecutive months, his or her HC Agreement shall be canceled for inactivity.
If an HC fails to pay his/her replicated website fees, he/she will be inactive and not eligible to earn commissions that month. If replicated website fees are not paid for three consecutive months, the HC will be cancelled for inactivity.
An HC’s violation of any of the terms of the Agreement, including any amendments that may be made by MDG in its sole discretion, may result in any of the sanctions listed in Section 9.1, including the involuntary cancellation of his or her HC Agreement. Can-cellation shall be effective on the date on which written notice is mailed, emailed, faxed, or delivered to an express courier, to the HC’s last known address, email address, or fax number, or to his/her attorney, or when the HC receives actual notice of cancellation, whichever occurs first.
MDG reserves the right to terminate all HC Agreements upon thirty (30) days written notice in the event that it elects to: (1) cease business operations; (2) dissolve as a corporate entity; or (3) terminate distribution of its products via direct selling.
A participant in this network marketing plan has a right to cancel at any time, regard-less of reason. Cancellation must be submitted in writing to the Company at its principal business address. The written notice must include the HC’s signature, printed name, ad-dress, and HC I.D. Number.
If an HC is also on the Autoship program, the HC’s Autoship order shall continue un-less the HC also specifically requests that his or her Autoship Agreement also be can-celed.
An HC may also voluntarily cancel his or her HC Agreement by failing to renew the Agreement on its anniversary date or by failing to pay his/her annual renewal fee.
Active Member — Anyone who purchases MDG consumer Membership and whose ac-count has been paid for the ensuing month.
Active HC — An HC who satisfies the requirements to be eligible to receive bonuses and commissions.
Active Rank — The term “active rank” refers to the current rank of an HC, as determined by the MDG Compensation Plan, for any pay period. To be considered “active” relative to a particular rank, an HC must meet the criteria set forth in the MDG Compensation Plan for his or her respective rank. (See the definition of “Rank” below.)
HC Party — A shareholder, member, partner, manager, trustee, or other parties with any ownership interest in, or management responsibilities for, a Business Entity.
Agreement — The contract between the Company and each HC includes the HC , the HC Terms and Conditions, MDG Policies and Procedures, the MDG Compensation Plan, and the Business Entity Form (where appropriate), all in their current form and as amended by MDG in its sole discretion. These documents are collectively referred to as the “Agreement.”
Cancel — The termination of an HC’s business. Cancellation may be either voluntary, involuntary, through non-renewal or inactivity.
Downline Leg — Each one of the individuals enrolled immediately underneath you and their respective linked by sponsorship HCs marketing organizations represents one “leg” in your marketing organization.
Household — Spouses, heads-of-household, and dependent family members residing in the same residence.
Immediate Household — Spouses, heads-of-household, and dependent family members residing in the same residence.
Level — The layers of downline HCs in a particular HC’s Marketing Organization. This term refers to the relationship of an HC relative to a particular upline HC, determined by the number of HCs between them who are related by sponsorship. For example, if A sponsors B, who sponsors C, who sponsors D, who sponsors E, then E is on A’s fourth level.
Official MDG Material — Literature, audio or video tapes, websites, and other materials developed, printed, published and/or distributed by MDG to HCs.
Personal Production — Enrolling new Members
Rank — The “title” that an HC holds pursuant to the MDG Compensation Plan. “Title Rank” refers to the highest rank an HC has achieved in the MDG compensation plan at any time. “Paid As” rank refers to the rank at which an HC is qualified to earn commis-sions and bonuses during the current pay period.
Recruit — The term “Recruit” means the actual or attempted sponsorship, solicitation, enrollment, encouragement, or effort to influence in any other way, either directly, indi-rectly, or through a third party, another MDG HC or Member to enroll or participate in in MDG or another multilevel marketing, network marketing or direct sales opportunity.
Replicated Website – A website provided by MDG to HCs which utilizes website tem-plates developed by MDG.
Resalable — Sales aids shall be deemed "resalable" if each of the following elements is satisfied: 1) they are unopened and unused; 2) packaging and labeling has not been al-tered or damaged; 3) they are in a condition such that it is a commercially reasonable practice within the trade to sell the sales aid at full price; 4) it is returned to MDG within one year from the date of purchase. Resalable does not mean that the sales aids are in current use by MDG.
Social Media — Any type of online media that invites, expedites or permits conversation, comment, rating, and/or user generated content, as opposed to traditional media, which delivers content but does not allow readers/viewers/listeners to participate in the creation or development of content, or the comment or response to content. Examples of Social Media include, but are not limited to, blogs, chat rooms, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn, Delicious, and YouTube.
Sponsor — An HC under whom an enroller places a new HC, and is listed as the sponsor on the HC or Member Application and Agreement.
Upline — This term refers to the HC or HCs above a particular HC in a sponsorship line up to the Company. Conversely stated, it is the line of sponsors that links any particular HC to the Company.
Every page of a downline activity report should have a header or footer that indicates the confidential nature of the report. For example:
All HC genealogy reports are confidential, proprietary information of MDG, and constitute a business trade secret belonging to MDG. Genealo-gy reports may only be used in accordance with and for the limited pur-poses set forth in the MDG Policies and Procedures.
Please be aware that in addition to the reporting requirements of the Federal Internal Revenue Code (which requires you to report the income of distributors who earn $600 or more during the year via IRS Form 1099 MISC), certain states also require you to report distributor income. These include:
California — Registration required, if paid $600 or more per year.
Connecticut — Report independent contractors if over $5000 per year payment "is anticipated."
Iowa — Definition of "contractor" in Iowa: Who is 18 years of age or older; Who per-forms in IA and to whom a payor of income makes payments which are not subject to income withholding for child support; For whom the payor of income is required by the IRS to file a 1099 MISC form; Who is a natural, individual person, NOT a corpo-ration, government, business trust, estate, partnership, or other legal entity, however organized.
New Hampshire – Report independent contractors if paid over $2,500 or more per year.
Ohio – Report independent contractors if paid over $2,500 or more per year.
Typically, you must file with the states within 15 to 20 days from the date on which the independent contractor earned the specified sum.
