The home panel is investigating One Medical because they allegedly had customers of Covid’s vaccine line cut

A congressional committee overseeing the Covid-19 crisis has investigated medical care provider One Medical over reports that it has given vaccines to family and friends of executives and to wealthy clients who have not yet been eligible in their states not.

Rep. James Clyburn, DS.C., chairman of the House Select subcommittee on the coronavirus crisis, sent a letter to Amir Dan Rubin, chief executive of One Medical, on Monday seeking documents on their vaccine practices. .

Because the supply of Covid-19 vaccines remains scarce, state health departments have arranged doses to preferred groups of people, mostly prominent health professionals, the elderly, and people with underlying medical conditions who pose a higher risk. In the letter, Clyburn claims that San Francisco-based One Medical has repeatedly and deliberately disregarded vaccine admission requirements in several cities and states over the past two months. “

One Medical, which has a market capitalization of about $ 6.4 billion, offers VIP healthcare services to customers in exchange for an annual fee of $ 199. The company, which became known last year under the name 1Life Healthcare, is according to its website operates in nine states and the District of Columbia.

“Despite the warning that the company’s weakened oversight of vaccine admission rules would allow ineligible patients to jump the line, One Medical apparently failed to implement an effective protocol to be eligible “and instructed staff not to be eligible for police,” Clyburn wrote.

“I am very concerned that the refusal of medical providers to follow vaccination guidelines and the deliberate delivery of doses to individuals in lower priority groups could cost more American lives and the inclusion of the virus in the country. can slow down or even derail, “Clyburn wrote.

Representatives of One Medical did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

Shares of One Medical fell more than 1% on Tuesday.

The congressional inquiry comes after NPR obtained internal communications from the company last week which showed that it regularly allowed wealthy customers and people with ties to industry leaders to restrict the vaccine. In some of the cities where One Medical operates, the company has been awarded thousands of doses of rare vaccines, NPR reports.

Complaints about the company have prompted regulators, including the Department of Health in Washington, to stop distributing the vaccines to One Medical, NPR found.

“These reports raise concerns that the company could utilize federally funded vaccine exploitation to increase membership and generate fees regardless of whether prospective fee-paying members are eligible for vaccination,” Clyburn wrote in the letter to the company.

NPR reported that some healthcare providers have requested One Medical to change its practice.

“Why may young patients without health problems during a trial membership … book and receive an informed vaccine while health workers are on the waiting list?” requested one medical call in January, according to the internal communication NPR received. “I’ve only seen two appointments for such people.”

In response to similar questions, employees were told not to get the vaccine from patients.

“If this person sees themselves at a level being vaccinated, they can testify and make an appointment,” Spencer Blackman, director of clinical education at the company, told NPR in a letter to a doctor, according to NPR. You can not make the decision if someone ‘gets’. [a] vaccine or not. ‘