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A group of Newark-based medical providers has been slapped with $3.8 million in civil penalties for allegedly charging patients for COVID-19 tests that were advertised as free, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office announced Friday.
Trovato Medical Group, Inc., American Expert Doctors, Inc., Saloojas Inc., and Parmjit M. Singh were also issued a permanent injunction by an Alameda County Superior Court judge prohibiting them from engaging in false or misleading advertising or unlawful, unfair or fraudulent business practices, according prosecutors.
In a default judgement, the judge also reaffirmed an earlier order that the business entities, which are related, refrain from billing or trying to collect money from anyone who used their COVID services.
The case stems from the defendants’ work providing COVID-19 tests and vaccinations to “tens of thousands of patients at a Newark clinic between 2020 and 2023,” District Attorney’s Office officials said in a news release.
Despite advertising these services as free, the defendants allegedly tried to bill patients up to $1,000 per test or vaccination, in violation of California’s ban on charging patients for COVID tests and vaccinations.
“During a public health crisis, residents should not be misled or pressured into paying for services that were represented as free,” District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson said. “This judgment holds the defendants accountable and protects consumers from unlawful billing practices.”
– Story by Kiley Russell, Bay City News Service
