HOLLAND, Mich. — A pharmacy in Ottawa County is accused of price gouging.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel issued a notice of intended action (NIA) to Skip’s Pharmacy in Holland following complaints related to an at-home COVID-19 test kit being sold for far more than it should.
Nessel also issued a notice of intended action to pharmacies in Madison Heights and Birch Run.
AG Nessel says she received complaints from consumers against Value Center Pharmacy in Madison Heights and Skip’s Pharmacy.
Skip’s Pharmacy and Value Center Pharmacy attempted to justify to prices of the kits by providing invoices showing how much they had paid to buy them from the third company, Birch Run Drugs.
“As detailed below, this Office has evidence Value Center Pharmacy was charging $50 per kit for the iHealth kit in December 2021, and that Skip’s Pharmacy was charging $80 per kit for that same product in early January 2022. We have compared these prices with both those being offered online as well as those being charged by other Michigan pharmacies. The information we have gathered provides probable cause to believe Value Center Pharmacy and Skip’s Pharmacy were charging prices to consumers for the iHealth kit grossly in excess of the price at which this kit was being sold by other retailers,” the NIA states.
According to a press release from Nessel, when purchased online from the manufacturer, the iHealth COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test currently retails for $17.98 for a package containing two tests and was selling for as high as $19.98 over the past month.
Nessel says in addition to owning those two pharmacies, the resident agent, Murali Ginjupalli, has a connection with Birch Run Drugs in Birch Run. The Department discovered the relationship during evidence gathering.
According to Nessel, her department is inviting the pharmacies to explore a voluntary assurance agreement to avoid additional legal action. The pharmacies have until February 13 to respond and to provide additional documentation.
“Compounding this Office’s concerns is the resistance we have met in trying to gather information about the prices being offered at Value Center and Skip’s Pharmacy for iHealth tests. We understand these stores to be under common ownership. And, when we finally did receive some information we were requesting, it was in the form of invoices showing Value Center and Skip’s Pharmacy purchased the kits from Birch Run Drugs. A business look-up of Birch Run Drugs on the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) website shows you are the resident agent for that entity as well. Thus, it appears an effort was made to justify the prices being charged by Value Center and Skip’s Pharmacy through invoices that do not reflect arms-length transactions,” the NIA explains.
You can read the full NIA below.
Notice of Intended Action With Attachments-Revised 747346 7 by WXMI on Scribd
