A head pharmacist from Bihor settled for fictitious medical services of 377,000 lei. With the money he bought jewelry, clothes and a car

The head pharmacist of the hospital in Marghita, Bihor county, illegally collected over 377,000 lei from fictitious medical services. For 3 years, the woman paid CAS Bihor money for the home care of some patients who, in reality, would not have received medical assistance. From the amounts thus obtained, she bought clothes, jewelry and a car, writes bihon.ro. The chief pharmacist escaped the accusation of fraud, but is obliged by the court to return the money to CAS Bihor.

The facts, writes the cited source, took place between 2015 and 2018, when, as a representative of an SRL with activities “related to human health”, he would have settled at CAS Bihor home medical care services which, in reality, were not administered to the beneficiaries. Among them, the prosecutors listed “applying plaster, (…) measuring physiological parameters, temperature, breathing, pulse, (…) therapeutic maneuvers to avoid pulmonary complications”.

In reality, however, the care services were not provided, which was confirmed during the process, both by the patients’ relatives and by the employees of the woman’s company.

In order to obtain the identity documents of the so-called beneficiaries, the woman would have used the pretext of providing diapers for bedridden elderly people.

“She used them to draw up the files requesting medical care at home, which were later approved by the president of CAS Bihor, following the fraudulent use by the defendant of the patients’ health cards on the occasion of the electronic signature of the medical services for the settlement of some medical services not rendered”, the magistrates explained.

The illegally settled money from CAS Bihor was withdrawn from the company by the woman, who allegedly bought jewelry, clothes and a car, say the investigators.

In December 2021, the head pharmacist was sent to court for computer fraud (425 material documents), forgery in documents under private signature (490 material documents) and 8 crimes of forgery in statements.

During the trial at the Marghita Court, the cited source writes, the court changed the charge of computer fraud to cheating and ordered the termination of the trial, because the statute of limitations expired in April 2023.

Instead, the judge admitted the CAS Bihor action and forced the woman to pay 377,417 lei – the damage caused to the Single National Health Insurance Fund, to which penalties and increases were added.

On April 26, 2024, the Oradea Court of Appeal rejected the pharmacist’s appeal and upheld the sentence of the trial court, the cited source also writes.

Editor: Izabela Zaharia