Charlie Fisher
State Director, OSPIRG
State Director, OSPIRG
OSPIRG Foundation
18 Oregon state legislators are calling on the country’s top online marketplaces to crack down on price gouging amidst the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Together, 347 legislators representing 45 states, joined OSPIRG Foundation in sending a letter urging Amazon, Craigslist, eBay, Facebook and Walmart to quickly implement preventative measures on their platforms to ensure that consumers don’t get taken advantage of during this public health crisis. Less than two weeks ago, 33 attorneys general, including Oregon AG Ellen Rosenblum sent a similar letter to the same companies.
“We believe you have an ethical obligation and patriotic duty to help your fellow citizens in this time of need by doing everything in your power to stop price gouging in real-time,” the letter reads, in part.
Since the beginning of the outbreak, the cost of critical health supplies has spiked dramatically on online platforms. An analysis last month from the OSPIRG Foundation found that existing monitoring on Amazon’s platform was not preventing significant price hikes. In particular, the cost of most hand sanitizers and masks rose at least 50 percent higher than the 90-day average. Since then, more than 335,000 Americans have signed PIRG’s petition calling on Amazon to protect consumers from price gouging.
Despite some steps taken by companies, exorbitant price increases are still occurring. In just the last week, OSPIRG Foundation highlighted numerous examples of price gouging, including:
“Americans are already worried about their health and the health of their loved ones during this pandemic. They shouldn’t also have to worry about being ripped off on the critical supplies they need to get through it,” said Charlie Fisher, OSPIRG Foundation State Director. “We’re grateful for so many legislators in Oregon and the 347 nationally who are standing up for consumers during this crisis. Elected officials shouldn’t wait any longer to investigate how online platforms may be enabling price gouging.”
Specifically, state legislators from 45 states — with the support of OSPIRG Foundation — are calling on companies to:
“With their vast technological prowess, companies have the ability and the moral obligation to take aggressive action to prevent exploitative price gouging — at all times, but especially during this crisis. These few potential solutions should be seen as just the beginning,” finished Fisher
Oregon legislators who signed the letter were:
State Senators Shemia Fagan, Jeff Golden, and Chuck Riley, and;
State Representatives Janelle Bynum, Julie Fahey, David Gomberg, John Lively, Susan McLain, Tiffiny Mitchell, Courtney Nearon, Rob Nosse, Mark Owens, Carla Piluso, Bill Post, Karin Power, Andrea Salinas, Sheri Schouten, and Janeen Sollman.