Suspicious, unauthorized COVID-19 test sites appear in SF, prompt legal scrutiny
The SF City Attorney’s Office said “illegal and clandestine facilities” selling COVID tests to peddling have reportedly operated in Dolores Park, Golden Gate Park and elsewhere in San Francisco.
We will give so much credit to a business that stands accused of managing fake COVID-19 test sites in several American states – the appearance of their test sites has the same generic but recognizable rickety tent structure, with a blue canopy and a white sign with red letters indicating “Free Covid Test” or “Free Covid Testing Site”.
Local mission noticed one of them over the weekend at 18th and Dolores streets, and the site could not produce a permit indicating that they were authorized to perform the tests. When the reporter for that site asked for a phone number to confirm the test site’s legitimacy, Mission Local reports, “The number he provided to his boss went through an automated message from Verizon stating that the” customer was missing. thread you are trying to reach is not available. ‘”
“No one is causing us problems. No police came to tell us we couldn’t be here, ”site staff said.
They could not produce a permit when asked. The company? Their Marin site was closed last year for unlicensed operation.
From @AnlanCheney https://t.co/ITlKr8ctpo
– Local mission (@MLNow) January 9, 2022
This company, Community Wellness America, has also been accused of operating unauthorized testing sites. in Marin County, San Diego, and Seattle. Now add San Francisco to that list, as the Chronicle reports the company is accused of running at least two unauthorized COVID testing sites, with one in Golden Gate Park in addition to the one Mission Local looked at.
Beware of contextual test sites. California is currently investigating Community Wellness America, a nonprofit that claims to have performed 200,000 free tests (reimbursed by the federal government) across the country. Marin County residents say 172 nonprofit tests were botched or lost. No response from CWA pic.twitter.com/9oRKgat2Xt
– Wayne Freedman (@WayneFreedman) August 10, 2021
“San Francisco is increasingly concerned about illegal and clandestine facilities that purport to offer COVID-19 testing to the public,” the city attorney’s office said in its cease and desist letter. “We have reason to believe that Community Wellness America is associated with an illegal COVID-19 testing site in San Francisco. “
This cease-and-desist letter stated that the Golden Gate Park site had produced a Clinical Laboratory Improvement License (CLIA), but that it had expired, and in the name of another company called Crestview Clinical Laboratories.
A spokesperson for Crestview Clinical Laboratories told The Chronicle: “They should be shut down immediately” and “They must have used our license without our approval.”
With official COVID testing from the San Francisco Department of Public Health going from a collapse to a complete shit show, it’s no surprise that COVID shyster testing sites are rushing to confused and exasperated residents. They could try to extract money or personal information from people or fill in the results to get a refund from the government. The Richmond Review recently reported that in August a fake COVID testing site turned out to be Recall Chesa Boudin petition scam, and that those “tested at the site were asked to sign a piece of paper which turned out to be a petition to recall the district attorney.”
But even with the wait times, you’re better off going to a city-approved site or getting tested through your health care provider. Here is a list of city sanctioned COVID-119 test sites.
Related: Of course, unauthorized testing sites appear in SF as COVID testing becomes scarce [SFist]
Image: @WayneFreedman via twitter