Washington files complaint against the Centers for COVID Control
CHICAGO – Washington state filed a complaint Monday against a nationwide coronavirus test chain that operates at more than 300 locations across the United States and collects tens of thousands of tests a day.
The Center for COVID Control and its primary laboratory, Physicians Clinical Laboratory, provided “invalid, false, and delayed” COVID-19 test results to Washingtonians, or failed to provide results. any, according to a complaint from the Washington State Attorney General’s office.
“The company’s illegal activities include storing tests in trash bags for more than a week instead of properly refrigerated storage and delaying sample collection dates so that older samples can still be disposed of,” according to the press release. from the office. “Employees reported that the company instructed them to ‘lie to patients daily’ when Washingtonians complained about their delayed results.”
The Centers for COVID Control said last week suspend experimental collection operations “indefinitely.” At its peak, the company operated hundreds of locations across at least 26 states and collected about 80,000 tests a day, according to the company.
More statuses and federal official are investigating the company and the laboratory. Minnesota Attorney General’s Office file a civil complaint two weeks ago accused the test chain and lab of “providing inaccurate and fraudulent test results”, fraudulently reporting negative results and “representing the federal government” that insured individuals Private or public insurance is not actually covered.
Doctor clinical laboratory has been reimbursed more than 155 million dollars through the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration’s COVID-19 Uninsured Program, public data shows. Private health insurance companies have also paid for the lab.
FBI earlier this month Search Center for COVID Control Headquarters in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, just outside of Chicago. The agency would not comment on the investigation.
The COVID Control Center and Physicians’ Clinical Laboratory are registered at the same Rolling Meadows address, and call center agents answered calls to both the testing site and the lab. .
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Officials from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services visited testing sites and labs in November and December and recorded many “omissions.” The agency’s report describes the Centers for COVID Control as “a marketing enterprise that establishes COVID-19 testing sites” and contracts with laboratories.
USA TODAY began investigating the Centers for COVID Control in early January. Business temporary “pause” test collection weeks later, citing “increased media scrutiny” in an internal memo to employees.
In a statement last week, Centers for COVID Control founders Aleya Siyaj and Akbar Syed said they were “shifting our focus from running a test collection marketing and management company to responding to recover and cooperate with legal probes, as well as to clear our good name.”
Siyaj and Syed have “encouraged independent operators” of the search chain’s link-collecting sites “to link to other suppliers” and with a certified laboratory, a spokesperson for Siyaj and Syed said. Centers for COVID Control, Russ Keene told USA TODAY on Friday.
“With the field collection sites no longer affiliated with the CCC, most headquarters operations will also be shut down for the foreseeable future,” Keene said.
Syed and Siyaj, who are married, have attracted attention in recent months for posting pictures on social media of luxury cars and a new mansion worth 1.36 million dollars. In one post, Syed attributed his wealth to “COVID money”.
Dozens of people across at least 20 states came to the US TODAY express concern about COVID Control Center test sites. Iowa, Michigan and New Mexico have received complaints about the websites, the respective attorney general’s offices told USA TODAY. Others – including Colorado, Massachusetts, Maryland and New York – closed or issued warnings to the sites.
The Illinois Attorney General’s office and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are also reviewing the company and lab. The Oregon Department of Justice is investigating the company for suspected violations of the Unfair Trade Practices Act.
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Meanwhile, two other labs in the Chicago area that operate test sites in other states are also being investigated. The Illinois Department of Public Health is reviewing O’Hare Clinical Laboratory and Northshore . Clinical Laboratoryspokeswoman Melaney Arnold confirmed last week.
Spokesperson Tori Joseph said the Illinois Attorney General’s Office has received more than 30 complaints regarding O’Hare Clinical Laboratories. According to the state attorney general’s office, at least 10 people have filed complaints about the Kentucky lab.
O’Hare Clinical Laboratories has operated trial sites at more than 30 sites in at least 10 states, according to the O’Hare Clinical Labs website. The lab did not immediately confirm how many sites were active.
In a statement, O’Hare Clinical Laboratories said it had served “as a reference laboratory” for the Centers for COVID Control “for a brief period during the Thanksgiving holiday when it was experiencing problems.” about spills.The lab said it “discontinued” relationships with the company last year.
The Illinois Attorney General’s office said it has also received more than 40 complaints related to Northshore Clinical Laboratories. Spokesman Nathan Orme said the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services is conducting a state licensing investigation into the lab.
It is not clear how many testing sites Northshore Clinical Labs operates or contracts with. The lab said it “respectfully declines to disclose a specific number.”
O’Hare Clinical Laboratories has been reimbursed more than $187 million through the COVID-19 Uninsured Program and Northshore Clinical Laboratories has been reimbursed more than $164 million, public data for see.
The labs have an “F” rating by the Better Business Bureau, said Steve Bernas, regional president of the nonprofit office.
Contact reporter Grace Hauck with tips at [email protected].