Despite restraining order, Bay Area man says urgent care billed him for 'free' COVID tests
NEWARK, Calif. (KGO) -- Despite a restraining order being in place to prevent a Newark urgent care from charging patients for COVID-19 tests, which it advertised as free, one patient says he recently received a call threatening to take him to collections.
ABC7 News covered the story in February after patients said they received bills up to $1,000 for tests done years earlier.
AFC Urgent Care in Newark admits the call was likely a mistake, but this patient wonders if the business is still trying to get money wherever it can.
ORIGINAL STORY: Bay Area urgent care patients billed up to $900 each after receiving free COVID tests
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, patients flocked to AFC Urgent Care in Newark.
"They hung a sign on their building saying free COVID tests," said Clayton Hirst.
But Hirst was one of several patients who later discovered the tests weren't free. He received a call from the business that he owed more than $1,000.
"Well, I was very confused and I was just highly concerned," Hirst.
Hirst had seen a report ABC7 News did in February about AFC Urgent Care in which the owner, Dr. Parmjit Singh, said AFC Urgent Care was billing patients because it hadn't been reimbursed by insurance companies and couldn't sue the insurance companies for the money under the CARES Act.
"I should be getting rewards and awards for being a selfless person. But instead, I'm being hunted by patients who don't understand when they needed a service at 2 a.m., they came here and touched my feet, sir, thank you for being open and today the same patients say, why should we pay your bill?" said Dr. Singh in February.
In February, a Alameda County Superior Court judge issued a temporary restraining order precluding AFC Urgent Care in Newark from billing patients for pandemic COVID services.
"I did mention it to the caller at the time and he did threaten me that he was going to send me to collections," said Hirst.
MORE: Years after pandemic, Bay Area families receiving bills for 'free' school COVID tests
So Hirst contacted 7 On Your Side.
Rattan Dhaliwal is one of the attorneys for AFC Urgent Care.
"If the call went out, obviously it's a mistake because as far as I know Dr. Singh stopped the collections effective Jan. 20 and that was long before the restraining order application was filed," said Dhaliwal.
"It's a numbers game is what I imagine... cause if they call 100 people, there's gonna be a certain percentage of them that this is going to scare them and they're going to pay whatever it is that they're asking," said Hirst.
"We are not doing any numbers game here. Nobody is playing any Mickey Mouse games here," said Dhaliwal.
According to the California Health and Human Services website, California was still covering free COVID tests until November 11, 2023... six months beyond the federal requirements on health plans to continue covering COVID-19 tests, vaccines and treatment from any licensed provider (in or out-of-network) with no prior authorization or enrollee cost sharing.
"Would the threat of going to collections have been substantial enough for you that you would have paid the bill?" ABC7 News investigative reporter Melanie Woodrow asked Hirst.
"It's very likely I'm not, I have a very good credit standing, I'm a very busy guy, so having to deal with having to overcome a false collections claim a lot of times it's not worth my time, it would be a lot easier for me to make that payment so I don't have to deal with it," said Hirst.
ABC7 News asked AFC's attorney who he believes is responsible for reimbursing for these COVID-19 tests.
"Right now, the way I'm reading it, nobody. Dr. Singh got shafted in here," said Dhaliwal.
"Then why are patients getting bills and getting phone calls?" asked Woodrow.
"Since I came into the picture, we stopped it. If somebody got it, that's a mistake," said Dhaliwal.
Trovato Medical Group, which does business as AFC Urgent Care of Newark, filed for bankruptcy. The attorney for the company says Dr. Singh may also file for bankruptcy.
Take a look at more stories and videos by 7 On Your Side.
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