Fraud “scandal” at Public Hospital- Health Minister

Last Updated on Saturday, 26 December 2015, 21:00 by GxMedia

A cashier at the state-run Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) has been fingered in connection with an alleged multi-million dollar fraud following an audit there, Health Minister, Dr. Bheri Ramsarran said Tuesday.

“We are dealing with an unfortunate situation of a scandal which has demonstrated certain weaknesses,” he told a news conference.

A top official of the Guyana Police Force, when contacted, was not immediately aware of such a probe, saying that such allegations are handled directly by the Fraud Squad.

The GPHC first announced on October 1 that the police and Auditor General’s Office were investigating an alleged fraud at the health care institution.

The Health Minister said at least GUY$4.131 million dollars “were in question and cannot be accounted for.”
He said the cashier was on bail but he could not specify whether it was court of station bail. Authorities are yet to decide whether she should repay the money.

Monies missing included partial payments for certain tests that are done at private hospitals to which the cash should have been remitted.