Washington state attorney general sues Covid-19 testing company that has more than 275 locations nationwide

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(CNN)Prosecutors are suing an Illinois-based Covid-19 testing company over allegedly storing tests in garbage bags, operating without licensure in some locations and improperly collecting customers’ insurance information.

Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed the lawsuit Monday against the Center for COVID Control (CCC), its testing lab and two of its co-founders, according to a news release from his office.

The company “frequently failed to report any test results at all, causing potentially COVID-19 free individuals to isolate and miss work, travel, and time with loved ones unnecessarily,” and often provided inaccurate results, the lawsuit alleges.

Further, the lawsuit accuses CCC of “(engaging) in unfair or deceptive acts or practices in violation of the Consumer Protection Act,” adding that customers’ insurance information was “unfairly and deceptively” collected.

The law helps protect people from “unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce” according to the Washington state legislature.

CNN has reached out to CCC for comment.

The company offers more than 275 testing locations nationwide, according to its website, where it describes itself as a “distinctive organization applying the highest level of service in the fight” against Covid-19.

CCC announced last month that it would be pausing operations from January 14 through January 22 because “unusually high patient demand has stressed staffing resources, as has been widely reported, in a subset of our locations, affecting our usual customer service standards and diagnostic goals.”

The company recently extended its pause of operations and didn’t indicate when it would reopen.

“CCC remains committed to providing the highest level of customer service and diagnostic quality and will not resume collection of patient samples until staffing resources permit CCC to operate at full capacity,” the company said at the time of the pause. “CCC will provide an update on reopening plans when appropriate.”

With the winter surge leading to an increased demand for Covid-19 testing, several state attorneys general have urged caution among residents trying to find reliable testing sites. Attorneys general in Oregon, New Mexico and Illinois warned consumers of “pop-up” Covid-19 testing sites that might give false results or skim personal information.

Prior to CCC’s closing, the company had “at least 13 testing sites in Washington” the lawsuit said. The company only had a license to operate in one of those locations, the suit added.

“Center for Covid Control is committed to serving our patients in the safest, most accurate and most compliant manner,” CCC co-founder and CEO Aleya Siyaj previously said in a news release. “Regrettably, due to our rapid growth and the unprecedented recent demand for testing, we haven’t been able to meet all our commitments.”