◆ Northwell Health in New York State has paid $650,000 in penalties and $400,000 in refunds to patients for allegedly misleading New Yorkers in search of COVID-19 tests in the throes of the pandemic, the New York State Office of the Attorney General (OAG) said April 12. The OAG alleged that Northwell Health “deceptively advertised three of its emergency departments in New York City and on Long Island as COVID-19 testing sites where New Yorkers could simply get a COVID-19 test, but then billed patients for emergency room visits.” According to the Assurance of Discontinuance, “Despite the fact that at various periods of time the Three Northwell Locations had some interior signage and/or notices to individuals that their visits would be treated as emergency department visits, based on complaints received by the NYAG as well as the NYAG’s review of Northwell’s own documents and information, some Testing Individuals at each of the Three Northwell Locations believed that they were simply receiving COVID testing and were not clearly informed that their visits would be charged as trips to emergency departments.”[1]