Covid testing company with 300 pop-up sites across U.S. faces multiple probes

A company that operates more than 300 Covid-19 pop-up testing sites around the country is under investigation in multiple states and by a federal agency after drawing dozens of consumer complaints ranging from late test results to concerns that no tests were being conducted at all.

The Illinois-based Center for Covid Control was founded in Dec. 2020 by Aleya Siyaj, 29, whose previous experience includes starting an axe-throwing lounge and a donut shop, according to state business records and her LinkedIn page.

In recent weeks, the Oregon Department of Justice and the Illinois attorney general opened civil investigations into the firm. Massachusetts and Rhode Island have issued cease and desist letters to the company, and local regulators in Washington and California shut down several of its sites for operating without a license.

An inspection by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid also shut down multiple sites operating without a license in Massachusetts.

“We take seriously any allegations of fraud or misbehavior by COVID-19 testing sites,” said Dr. Lee Fleisher, chief medical officer and director of the Center for Clinical Standards and Quality at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

“CMS is actively investigating numerous complaints about multiple laboratories and testing sites associated with this private company.”

The Center for Covid Control announced on Thursday that it has paused operations for a week and plans to reopen on Jan. 22.

In a statement posted to its website, the company said “due to our rapid growth and the unprecedented recent demand for testing, we haven’t been able to meet all our commitments.” It said it will use the pause “for additional staff training in sample collection and handling, a refocus on customer service and communication practices, and ensure compliance with regulatory guidelines.”

The company noted its testing volume had recently increased tenfold, to 80,000 tests a day, and that a key factor in its “present customer service challenges” was the quick spread of Omicron among its 3,000 frontline staff members.

An internal memo, first obtained by USA Today, also cited “increased scrutiny by the media into the operations of our collection sites” over the past week, which, along with consumer complaints, “resulted in various state health departments and even [the Oregon] Department of Justice taking a keen interest in our company.”

In response to a request for comment by NBC News, a spokesperson for the center, Russ Keene, said the company is “in the midst of bringing on new talent and an ethics officer.”

After getting a test at one of the company’s Oregon sites in September, Kelly Fisher contacted the state’s attorney general, saying she was worried she had fallen “victim to a scam” as the site “felt very fishy” and wasn’t listed on the state’s page for Covid testing resources.

She said they asked her to provide a picture of her driver’s license and insurance information and did not deliver results in the promised time frame. The state attorney general received 10 similar complaints against the company in this week alone.

“I trusted that any…