ProtectHealth vows to take stern action

PETALING JAYA: Action will be taken against private medical practitioners (PMPs) and healthcare non-governmental organisations (NGOs) should there be any breach of procedure or ethics following reports on the sale of fake Covid-19 vaccination certificates, says ProtectHealth Corporation Sdn Bhd.

ProtectHealth, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ProtectHealth Malaysia, stressed that it would not compromise with any healthcare service provider found guilty of breaching standard operating procedure and policies set by the corporation and the Health Ministry (MOH).

“In ensuring that PMPs under ProtectHealth perform quality services and adhere to SOP set by MOH and us, regular random audits are conducted.

“Should any non-compliance be found, ProtectHealth will take action, and may suspend the PMP and healthcare NGOs concerned from conducting vaccinations in the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK).

“In addition, ProtectHealth’s medical audit team will conduct on-demand investigations should there be any complaint lodged or whenever ProtectHealth observes any data anomaly from our monitoring,” it said in a statement yesterday.

ProtectHealth also urged the public to act as whistleblowers and to report any suspicious or illegal activities to the authorities.

“This initiative can act as an effective deterrent to prevent fraud,” it said.

It noted that all PMPs under ProtectHealth are registered with the Malaysian Medical Council and their healthcare facilities are licensed under MOH, which is a prerequisite for these businesses to participate in PICK.

“PMPs and healthcare NGOs are also required to attend mandatory training before being allowed to administer vaccination, and they receive regular guideline updates from us and MOH.

“The vaccine is also only given to the PMPs and healthcare NGOs via a controlled mechanism by the Vaccine Storage Centre as per appointment counts issued by MySejahtera, or the prepared line listing.

“The vaccine administration records the vaccine serial number and both the identification of the vaccinee and vaccinator.

“ProtectHealth will not tolerate misconduct among any PMPs and healthcare NGOs under its supervision, and will provide its fullest cooperation with the authorities should there be any related incidents,” the statement said.

On Jan 17, a private clinic in Selangor offering fake vaccination certificates for RM500 was raided by the police.

Similarly, in Kota Baru, four people, including the operator of the private clinic, were arrested by the police for falsifying Covid-19 vaccination cards.