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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Did a consumer-advocacy group find that Amazon increased prices of essential items sharply as the coronavirus began to spread?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
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YES

According to a Public Citizen study, the prices of some essential items sold by Amazon directly jumped sharply in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic. Media reports, political leaders, law enforcement and Amazon itself focused on price spikes among third-party merchants on its platform during the period. But some products sold directly by the company also dramatically increased in price in spring 2020, including disposable face masks (a 1000% increase) and toilet paper (a 528% increase), the study found.

Although there is no federal law against price gouging, thirty-five states prohibit charging excessively high prices for goods during public emergencies. Some states, including New Jersey and Illinois, included price gouging prohibitions in their coronavirus emergency declarations.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Public Citizen: How Amazon raised prices to profit from the pandemic
US Senate: March 4 letter to Amazon CEO from Massachusetts Senator Jeff Markey
State of New Jersey: Office of the Governor, Executive Order No. 103
State of Illinois: Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation on COVID-19
National Law Review: Price gouging in the crosshairs during COVID-19
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.