Health Department Covers Up Illegal Lab in California

Cars parked outside a run-down old warehouse. A garden hose protruding through a rear wall and a foul odor coming from within.

STORY AT-A-GLANCE

• In mid-December 2022, an illegal Chinese medical lab was discovered in Reedley, California, in a dilapidated warehouse. The company, Universal Meditech Inc. — which was operating without a state license or other required permits — was manufacturing a wide variety of test kits, including pregnancy tests, ovulation tests, COVID-19 test ki…