Call to probe ‘dodgy’ GEMS deals
THE PROGRESSIVE Health Forum (PHF), a body of South African doctors, wants law enforcement agencies to probe the controversial R600 million multi-vitamins contract irregularly awarded by the Government Employees Medical Scheme (GEMS) through the quotation system in breach of the law.
It said the contract appeared to have been an arrangement to defraud GEMS because the scheme breached its own rules and ignored warnings from the Health Professionals Council of SA (HPCSA) and the SA Pharmacy Council,
Dr Aslam Dasoo, the forum's convenor, said the police and Special Investigating Unit (SIU) should look into the contract because there was no rationale for awarding it in terms of the Medical Schemes Act.
“The matter must be reported to the SAPS and, if warranted, the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) for further investigation,” Dasoo said.
He said this was because the scheme's board of trustees and management were warned that the project would result in abuse and wastage of public resources.
“In most cases storage of these products for five months in the SA environment would result in the degradation of the products.
“The warnings also included that the cost to the scheme, i.e. the members, was much higher than the price at which patients could acquire these vitamins if they were ethically prescribed and dispensed.
“The Health Professionals Council of SA, HPCSA, as well as the SA Pharmacy Council, should convene an inquiry into the obvious breach of the ethical rules of medical practice by those health professionals in GEMS and among its various service providers and take the relevant disciplinary measures against them,” Dasoo added.
The Cape Times’ sister newspaper, Pretoria News reported that GEMS had awarded the contract to Activo Health through the quotation system even though the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) required state contracts above R500 000 to be advertised. The contract, signed by GEMS principal officer Dr Stan Moloabi, was awarded on Christmas Eve for the provision of multivitamins A-Z to 1 million GEMS members for five months, starting from January this year.
Moloabi last night rejected claims that the multivitamin contract was a scheme to defraud GEMS.
“The rollout of the MultiVitamin Project was as a result of the GEMS members requesting the Scheme through various forums and platforms, particularly during the height of the Covid-19 to procure vitamins on their behalf.
“The requests were made amongst others at the Scheme's AGM and through the Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC). GEMS is a medical scheme registered in terms of the Medical Scheme Act 131 of 1998 and is therefore not subject to the PFMA,” Moloabi said.
He also denied that GEMS had been waned by the (Progressive Health Forum and others against awarding the contract).
“These allegations are unfounded. The GEMS Board has never had any interaction with the Progressive Health Forum relating to this matter.” “Life Esidimeni disaster inquiry put paid to that defence”..
The CMS said it had not received any complaints or tip-offs about the contract. “The CMS only became aware of the allegations after reading these news article.”