CT physician earns Shkreli award overcharging for COVID tests

Dr. Steven Murphy, a Greenwich internist, has earned a 2020 Shkreli Award from the Lown Institute. Dr. Murphy earned the award for overcharging at several town COVID testing sites he ran for several towns including New Haven. He overcharged thousands for “super Covid tests” and other unnecessary tests. He charged $480 for a 30-second phone call with results to a patient.

The Shkreli Awards, in its fourth year, highlights the top ten healthcare profiteers for the year chosen by a panel of clinical experts and patient advocates. Dr. Murphy earned the #8 spot. He joined the federal PPE task force, vaccine company profiteers, hospitals that refused uninsured patients, nursing homes that didn’t protect residents from COVID, vaccine manufacturers who refused to share information to benefit less-developed countries, a hospital executive and Moderna board member who profited on the vaccine, hospitals that punished doctors for wearing masks, pandemic profiteers, and private equity companies on the list. The award is named for Martin Shkreli who in 2015 raised the price of Daraprim, an anti-parasitic drug, by 5,600%  because he could.