SHOW LESSYou won’t believe what this company charges for one Virus test  The high price of Covid tests is one of the disturbing things that have occurred since the pandemic began.  According to the Yahoo! News, a company is charging $380 for a test they cost $20 in your local pharmacy.  At the drugstore, a rapid COVID test usually costs less than $20.  Across the country, more than a dozen testing sites owned by startup company GS Labs regularly bill $380.  There is a reason they can. When Congress tried to ensure that Americans would not have to pay for coronavirus testing, it required insurers to pay certain laboratories whatever “cash price” they listed online for the tests, with no limit on what that might be.  GS Labs’ high prices and growing presence — it has performed a half-million rapid tests since the pandemic’s start and still runs thousands daily — show how the government’s long-standing reluctance to play a role in health care prices has hampered its attempt to protect consumers. As a result, Americans could ultimately pay some of the cost of expensive coronavirus tests in the form of higher insurance premiums.  Many health insurers have refused to pay GS Labs’ fees, some contending that the laboratory is price-gouging during a public health crisis. A Blue Cross plan in Missouri has sued GS Labs over its prices, seeking a ruling that would void $10.9 million in outstanding claims.  In court last month, the insurer claimed that the fees were “disaster profiteering” and in violation of public policy.  Omaha, Nebraska-based GS Labs contends the exact opposite: that it has public policy on its side, pointing to the CARES Act passed in 2020. “Insurers are obligated to pay cash price, unless we come to a negotiated rate,” said Christopher Erickson, a partner at GS Labs.