Coronavirus Testing Company Sued for False Test Results

The Center for COVID Control (”the Center”)—a SARS-CoV-2 testing company based in Illinois— has been sued by Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson for improperly handling tests and giving out fake results in violation of the Consumer Protection Act. The Center, which has over 300 locations nationwide, received tens of thousands of coronavirus test kits a day.^{1 2}

The attorney general’s press release stated:

Center for COVID Control contributed to the spread of COVID-19 when it provided false negative results. These sham testing centers threatened the health and safety of our communities. They must be held accountable.³

COVID Testing Company Operating Nationally Only Had License to Operate in One City

While the Center promised rapid test results in fifteen minutes and PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test results within two days, complaints that test results were delayed or missing were made to health authorities prompting an investigation. Upon investigation, it was found that, although the company was operating nationally, it only had a license to operate in one city in Washington state despite having 13 testing sites in the state.⁴

The lawsuit will be asking for a preliminary injunction against the Center and is seeking civil penalties up to $12,500 for each violation of the Consumer Protection Act and for the Center to forfeit any profits.⁵

Minnesota’s attorney general also filed a similar suit against the center after one of their Minnesota labs was inspected by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid and found grave errors and mishandling of tests.⁶

According to a former employee, the Center’s testing lab could not keep up with the number of tests that it received and, “engaged in practices that resulted in consumers receiving false negative test results.⁷ Some tests were stored in unrefrigerated garbage bags for weeks while others were never tested.

Testing Company Lost and Mishandled COVID Tests, Falsely Billed Insurance Companies and Government

The Center’s director of operations advised employees to put false dates on the tests before sending them to the lab because tests expire after about three days. This resulted in numerous false negative test results and sham billing to insurance companies and the government for running the tests. When customers called for their results, employees were told to lie and say that their results were inconclusive and another test needed to be taken when, in reality, the test was lost or mishandled. The Center also billed the federal government $124 million falsely claiming the tests were for uninsured patients when many of them had insurance.⁸

A former employee said:

I had been uneasy for nearly all of my short tenure at [Center for COVID Control], but as trash bags of tests piled up and my team was instructed to lie to patients on a daily basis, I had had enough. I first requested a demotion from my shift lead position, and, shortly after that, I quit.⁹

The Center has announced that all of their labs will be temporarily closed while they train staff.¹⁰

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