A New Jersey-based company that operated four blood collection facilities in Connecticut without the proper approvals has been fined $25,000 by state health officials.
Accu Reference Medical Lab has acknowledged it ran the blood collection sites without obtaining a necessary written certificate of approval from the state, according to a consent order released by the state Department of Public Health. Operating the centers prior to that regulatory approval violates state law.
The facilities, which in some cases operated illegally for nearly a year, have been shut down since DPH issued an interim cease and desist order to the company in October.
Accu Reference officials did not return calls seeking comment.
Konstantin Bas, the licensee for Accu Reference, signed the DPH consent order, agreeing to its contents.
Prior to shutting down in October, blood collection sites had operated in Manchester since December 2013, South Windsor since November 2013, Enfield since March 2014 and West Hartford since May 2014.
Originally, in its October cease and desist order, DPH named only two sites – the Manchester and South Windsor labs – as operating without approvals.
In addition to the four blood collection sites, the company has a clinical laboratory at 580 Burnside Ave. in East Hartford that is licensed by the state. Accu Reference had been running the blood draw sites under its clinical laboratory license, according to DPH, but further written consent was needed.
According to the consent order, Accu Reference submitted a “plan of correction” to DPH in January, which DPH officials approved. The company has withdrawn all pending applications for blood draw facilities and has no pending applications for clinical laboratory licenses in Connecticut, according to the order.
Company officials paid the $25,000 fine to DPH at the time the consent order was signed.
Accu Reference is based in Linden, N.J. It operates blood draw locations in Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Virginia, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It conducts various lab tests, including blood, urine and genetic.
