This Lab Charges $380 for a Covid Test. Is That What Congress Had in Mind?

This Lab Charges $380 for a Covid Test. Is That What Congress Had in Mind?

The $380 cash price is posted on the GS Labs website. In legal documents, it has said that it pays “approximately $20” for the rapid test itself. Mr. Erickson says the high price reflects the “premium service” they provide patients, as well as the $37 million in start-up costs associated with building their laboratory network in less than a year.

“You can book 15 minutes out with us on any given day, and get your results in 15 to 20 minutes,” Mr. Erickson said, pointing to the scarcity of testing at many drugstores. “We have a nursing hotline where you can get your results interpreted. Our pricing is one of the most expensive in the nation because we have the best service in the nation.”

Health policy experts who reviewed the GS Labs prices said that, even with the company’s investment in its service, it was hard to understand why their tests should cost eight times the Medicare rate of $41.

“This is not like neurosurgery where you might want to pay a premium for someone to have years of experience,” said Sabrina Corlette, a research professor at Georgetown who has studied coronavirus testing prices.

Even though she felt its price was exceptionally high, Ms. Corlette and other experts said GS Labs had strong legal grounds to continue charging it because of how Congress wrote the CARES Act. “Whatever price the lab puts on their public-facing website, that is what has to be paid,” she said. “I don’t read a whole lot of wiggle room in it.”

GS Labs is owned by City+Ventures, a real estate and investment firm. It started its first testing site last October and, at its peak, operated 30 locations across the country.

Price of Gold Fundamental Weekly Forecast – Tapering, Higher Rates are Coming; Don’t Fight the Federal Reserve

Gold futures put in a mixed performance before closing slightly higher for the week. The price action was driven by a choppy trade in the U.S. Dollar, but gains were likely limited by a rise in U.S. Treasury yields. Gold was also support at times by lower demand for riskier assets.

Last week, December Comex gold futures settled at $1751.70, up $0.30 or +0.02%.

The reasons for the mostly sideways trade were confusing at times for short-term traders so we really didn’t take away much from the price action. The mid-to-longer-term looks bearish because the Fed signaled it was moving closer to tightening policy. This would take U.S. Dollars out of the market and pressure gold.

The dollar didn’t offer much guidance for gold traders last week. One day it was rallying because of safe-haven demand tied to stock market volatility. Another day it was falling because of easing tensions in the stock market. Overall, however, the dollar was supported by higher yields.

The race is on to see which central banks move aggressively toward removing stimulus from their respective economies. Some are raising rates or planning to raise rates, other are trimming stimulus or tapering bond purchases. The U.S. Dollar is in this mix and that doesn’t bode well for gold prices.

Gold prices may firm if the stock market continues to rally sharply, but that’s only because investors move into the safety of U.S. Treasurys. When they do that, yields fall and gold gets an artificial boost. Investors also move money into the U.S. Dollar, when weighs on gold prices.

I don’t think that even a stock market crash could turn gold into a mid-to-long term bull market. In order for that to happen, the Federal Reserve and other central banks would have to pump additional stimulus into the financial markets. That isn’t likely to happen, however, because most are trying to reduce stimulus. If they did an about face then they risk losing the market’s economy.

What this means is that the process of a global tightening of monetary policy is starting and gold prices will have limited upside potential.

Story continues

Weekly Forecast

Last week, the Federal Reserve announced that it would likely begin tapering before the end of the year. That’s the first step in tightening monetary policy. Real rates are likely to be pushed up by that news. The second step in the process is the first rate hike, which Fed policymakers said could occur as soon as 2022.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said on Friday the central bank should start reducing its support for the economy in November and could start raising interest rates by the end of next year should labor markets continue to improve.

What this means is to sell rallies in gold especially even if the China Evergrande debt problems trigger a spike higher.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

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With 26.1% jump in median home sales price, Hopedale is a hot ZIP code

HOPEDALE — You might need a lot of hope to land a new home in Hopedale nowadays.

You certainly need a lot more cash than a year ago.

While Worcester County is among the less expensive ones in which to live in Massachusetts, there’s one small (5.3 square miles) town near its southeast corner that’s seen its median single-family home price jump 26.1% this year.

That town is Hopedale.

Through the first eight months of this year, the median sales price for a single-family home in Hopedale was $495,000, up from $392,500 at the same time a year earlier, according to The Warren Group.

For all of Worcester County, the median home sales price increased 16.7%, from $345,000 to $396,000.

Hopedale wasn’t the only community in Greater Milford to see a large jump in year-over-year median price. Mendon matched Hopedale’s 26.1% rise, while Upton (up 25.1%) and Millis (up 24.6%) were close behind.

But Hopedale’s 29.5% increase in home sales so far this year (57 through Aug. 31 this year vs. 44 last year) far outpaces Mendon’s 3.7% increase, which arguably makes Hopedale the region’s hottest ZIP code.

As is the case in many other places, lack of inventory is a key reason Hopedale’s median home price has risen sharply. As of Sept. 23, there were fewer than five houses for sale in Hopedale, with another four listed as “contingent” — meaning an offer has been accepted.

Why is Hopedale so appealing?

Realtor Pamela Dietrich not only sells homes in Hopedale, she has also lived in town for 13 years after moving from Boston. She said a key draw was the public school system, which offers private school-size classes and a high school graduating class of about 80 students per year.

“It’s not a regionalized school — it’s just Hopedale — and I think that’s super appealing,” she said. “It’s just such a great little town; it’s small and has the best of everything, and it’s right on the brink of a more rural environment with all the farms, but it still feels a little removed from the everyday hustle and bustle.”

Hottest ZIP code in MetroWest? It’s Sudbury, with a 31.6% gain in home prices

Dietrich, who works for Afonso Real Estate in Milford, said the region surrounding Hopedale, including towns like Mendon and Upton, is more often ignored than other areas, but that they’re great options for those moving out of the city wanting cheaper living and more space.

Hopedale, which has approximately 6,000 residents, is also less than an hour’s drive to Boston, she said, and close to Interstate 495.

As an agent, Dietrich has noticed that when a house goes on the market in Hopedale, it tends to sell very quickly — and usually far above asking price.

She recently listed a home for $449,900 that is now under contract. That house, at 168-170 South Main St., was listed on a Tuesday and had an open house that Saturday, said Dietrich. By Sunday there were nine offers, and by that night an agreement was made, she said.

The new owner is closing on the three-family home in about a month, she said.

The home was built in 1780, which is more than 100 years older than the town of Hopedale itself (1886), said Dietrich.

5-square-mile town:6 facts about Hopedale on its birthday

Sales down, prices up across the state

While home price increases remain strong, at least one expert says a second straight year-over-year monthly decline in overall sales is telling.

Last month, there were 6,318 single-family home sales in Massachusetts, down 6.2% from the August 2020 total of 6,734 transactions, according to The Warren Group. July saw a similar year-over-year decline.

“The decline in home sales volume for the second straight month is significant,” said Tim Warren, CEO of The Warren Group, in a statement. “The data doesn’t lie. We’ve seen both the number of new listings and months supply dwindle, and the galloping real estate market has slowed to fast trot. No doubt that the low inventory and declining number of new listings is one factor, but it may not be the only one.”

More:Single-family home sales took a pause in Massachusetts in July

Is it a bubble? Experts share housing market predictions as local home prices climb

The statewide median home sale price is now $535,000, an all-time high. August was the fifth consecutive month that the statewide median topped $500,000, The Warren Group reported.

But Warren said prices have gotten higher than many people can afford, noting that those who can afford to buy have already done so and the rest are ready to give up on home shopping.

Lauren Young writes about business and pop culture. Reach her at 774-804-1499 or lyoung@wickedlocal.com. Follow her on Twitter @laurenwhy__.