WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Tuesday, March 17, Rep. Annie Kuster (NH-02) wrote to Andrew Smith, Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection, urging the Bureau to take measures to protect consumers from unreasonable price increases on home-health products during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kuster also encouraged the Bureau to work with airline and travel companies to resolve outstanding refunds in a timely manner. On Saturday, Kuster voted in favor of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which passed the House. This legislation will bolster the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak and address some of the economic impacts of this public health crisis.
“As a result of COVID-19, there are many reports of unreasonable price increases at popular retailers and online distributors of common household cleaning and hygiene products,” wrote Kuster.
“While it is my understanding that retailers and distributors are, in many cases, making efforts to reduce or mitigate these practices, any potential lack of access to sanitizers and other personal hygiene products caused by these unfair business practices could have potentially harmful public health effects.
“I encourage the Bureau of Consumer Protection to take measures to ensure consumers are protected from unreasonable price increases pertaining to crucial home-health products.
“I have been made aware of a lack of responsiveness on the part of many major airlines in the issuance of refunds for canceled flight plans,” Kuster continued. “As airline passengers across the country continue to cancel travel plans as a precautionary measure to combat the spread of COVID-19, these requests for refunds may continue to grow. I encourage the Bureau to work with airline companies to resolve outstanding refunds in a timely manner.”
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