Moldovan anticorruption centre detains 20 persons, of whom 12 physicians
16:44 | 09.02.2018 Category: Social
Chisinau, 9 February /MOLDPRES/ – Twenty persons, including twelve employees of healthcare sector and eight representatives of pharmaceutical companies in Chisinau, were detained by officers of National Anticorruption Centre (CNA) today, being suspected of involvement in a case on marketing of medicines.
The spokesman of CAN, Angela Starinschi, highlighted that they have been suspected of passive, active, and in – service corruption in cases as to implement a corruptible system through which sales agents of pharmaceutical companies agreed with more doctors in medical – sanitary institutions to promote their products.
The detentions occurred during searches conducted in some locations across Moldova, following which important evidence was found proving the scheme operation.
According to data of CNA, representatives of pharmaceutical companies identified physicians from healthcare institutions and persuaded, for money, to prescribe certain medicines in pharma stocks to patients. At their turn, medical institutions’ employees indicated to patients those preparations, but also pharmaceutical unit from where they could get them. In exchange for promotional services, medical workers got payments, systematically.
In the same file, there were also investigated actions of some council members for compensated medicines from compulsory healthcare insurance funds, which would have included or maintained certain pharmaceuticals on list of compensated medicines (LMC), this being contrary to the law. Among suspects of complicity with major pharmaceutical companies, there are some representatives of pharmaceutical inspectorate of the agency of medicines and medical devices (AMDM) too. They are suspected to have provided pharmaceutical companies with data upon unplanned controls to be carried out by AMDM.
As a result of searches of today, officers of CNA obtained uncontracted cash, intended to remunerate the medical staff for promotion of medical products. Similarly, there were confiscated lists with a nominal record of the doctors involved in promotion environment of medicines, medical institutions in which they operate and medicines to be prescribed to patients.
If found guilty, doctors will face up to 10 years in prison, and pharmaceutical company employees – up to 6 years of detention.
(Reporter A. Zara, editor L. Alcaza)
