PHOENIX—Reps. Greg Stanton and Ruben Gallego are calling on the leaders of the House Judiciary Committee to address efforts to price gouge life-saving medical supplies, an issue that has recently impacted public safety departments in Arizona and states across the country.
In a letter to Chairman Jerry Nadler, Ranking Member Jim Jordan, Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law Chairman David Cicilline, and Subcommittee Ranking Member Jim Sensenbrenner, the congressmen ask for oversight into “this egregious and illegal behavior.”
Stanton and Gallego reference a recently uncovered price gouging chain in Arizona—from manufacturers to vendors—that led some to attempt to charge the City of Phoenix Fire and Police Departments nearly 600 percent more than usual prices for N95 masks. Earlier this week they asked Attorney General William Barr and Federal Trade Commissioner Joseph Simons for an immediate investigation. And earlier today they asked for action from Arizona’s Attorney General Mark Brnovich.
“States and cities throughout the nation have shared similar stories of their first responders, doctors and nurses being victimized by profiteers during a national emergency,” they write. “The House Judiciary Committee has a role in overseeing this matter, and we look forward to working with the committee in the near future to address this egregious and illegal behavior.”
Stanton is a member of the Judiciary Committee. Their full letter is available here.