Lawmakers warn against price gouging during coronavirus outbreak

Nassau County Executive Laura Curran, State Sen. Todd Kaminsky and U.S. Rep. Kathleen Rice gathered on Sunday at Oceanside Middle School for a news conference to address price gouging during what Gov. Andrew Cuomo has declared a state of emergency.

Then Rice held a town hall with Nassau County Health Commissioner Dr. Lawrence Eisenstein and Dr. Sunil Sood, chairman of Pediatric Infectious Disease at Northwell Health.

Nassau County now has 19 confirmed coronavirus cases, according to the New York Department of Health website. That number was expected to increase, Eisenstein noted Sunday, as there were at least 18 pending tests in the county. There are 173 cases statewide.

Amid the outbreak, online sellers have been price gouging bottles of hand sanitizer. Some had the $3 to $5 product listed for $20 to $100 or more on Amazon. While Nassau officials said they had not seen gouging at local retailers, Gregory May, commissioner of the county’s Office of Consumer Affairs, urged anyone who sees “extraordinarily inflated prices” on sanitary items, such as soaps or sanitizers, to email pricegouging@nassaucountyny.gov or call the price gouging hotline at (800) 697-1220.

Kaminsky said he and his colleagues introduced a bill in the Senate that would give a clearer definition of price gouging. Currently, the law defines it as “prices that are unconscionable.” The bill would change that language to reflect a 10 percent increase in price within two weeks before or after a crisis, the senator said.

“The state is cracking down,” he said. “But it would be more helpful if we had a stricter law that sets clearer standards, gives teeth to enforcement and ensures that vendors provide medical products during emergencies at normal cost.”

“Any attempt to prey on the vulnerable and profiteer on essential goods, services and supplies during an emergency is flat out wrong,” Rice said. “We all remember all too well how this happened leading up to and in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, and that’s why it’s critical that we get out in front of this issue as we face another emerging threat.”

Rice also addressed price gouging at the town hall, and then called on Eisenstein and Sood to speak about the coronavirus and take questions from the community.

Eisenstein explained that the number of cases in the county will almost certainly increase; however, officials are working to minimize cases by educating the community. “As we keep the spread slow, that gives us time to learn and to target our efforts,” he said, noting some facts about the virus are still unknown, such as how long it lives on a hard surface.

The health commissioner also noted most people who contract the virus “do just fine” and will not become severely ill. Older adults and those with underlying respiratory health problems are more vulnerable to the illness.

Eisenstein encouraged residents to continue their daily lives as normal while taking precautions.

“Right now, there are 15,000 hospitalized people in New York state with the flu,” he said. “We don’t stop living because of the flu. We take precautions, we ask you to get vaccinated and ask people who get sick to stay away. We do the same for the coronavirus. We don't stop living or live in fear.”

Sood noted that while children do not seem to require hospitalization for the virus, they can be the biggest spreaders of it. “Pediatricians, parents and schools have a very important role to emphasize sanitizing and hand-washing for children,” he said.