Kaiser accused of using bundling strategy in processing COVID-19 test results to bill patients for influenza tests they didn’t ask for.
Testing for COVID-19 is supposed to be provided free under federal legislation aimed at slowing the virus’ spread, but a class-action lawsuit this month accuses Oakland-based Kaiser Permanente, California’s largest health insurer, of billing patients more than $300 for the procedure.
“Over the last two-and-a-half years of the pandemic we have supported our members and patients in obtaining a total of more than 20 million COVID-19 tests,” Kaiser’s statement said.which oversees insurers had no immediate response.
The lawsuit said Getubig did not request or want any test other than one to detect the COVID virus. It said that because the multiplex test processing includes COVID-19 results, it is against federal law to bill for it, even if it also includes results for other viruses. “We don’t know how long Kaiser has been doing this or how many people it’s affected,” Devine said. “We’ve heard from probably a handful of people in the last few weeks. That gives us some sense that this is a widespread practice.”