Stent 3: Medical treatment in private clinics
More resultsIntroduction
In October 2014, media outlets revealed text messages between public and private hospital doctors in which offers of bribes were made for patient referrals.
The messages brought to public attention the doctors’ abuse of the Programme for Treatment outside Public Health Institutions, established by the Ministry of Health. The prosecution alleged that 13 directors and medical doctors from private health institutions abused this scheme in cooperation with public hospitals.
- Country
- Kosovo
- Sector
- Health and pharma
- Offence
- Illegal pharmaceutical and medical activity
- Phase
- 1st instance procedure
Description of the case
In October 2014, media outlets revealed text messages between public and private hospital doctors in which offers of bribes were made for patient referrals.
The messages brought to public attention the doctors’ abuse of the Programme for Treatment outside Public Health Institutions, established by the Ministry of Health. The prosecution alleged that 13 directors and medical doctors from private health institutions abused this scheme in cooperation with public hospitals.
Three private hospitals (International Medicine Hospital, EDA Hospital and Doktor) allegedly participated in the scheme and bribed doctors from public hospitals. The primary beneficiaries would have been the International Medicine Hospital and EDA Hospital.
For each referral, the doctors allegedly gave bribes of €500 for patients referred for stent placement and €150 for patients sent for coronary scans. Depending on the number of stents placed, there were cases where patients had paid up to €14,000, while for coronary scans, patients paid at least €600. An estimated 233 patients have been referred to private healthcare institutions from medical doctors in public hospitals all over Kosovo (see here and here).
There are claims that besides cases that could not be treated in public institutions, some patients who could have been treated at Kosovo University Hospital and the Clinical Service Cardiology Clinic in Pristina were referred for treatment to private hospitals (see here and here).
Stent 3 is associated with two other criminal procedures: Stent 1, in which the former Minister of Health and Secretary-General of the Ministry of Health were charged with abuse of official position or authority, and Stent 2, relating to the public hospital doctors involved in this case.
Corruption offence
Irresponsible medical treatment (Article 254 of the Criminal Code)
Unlawful exercise of medical or pharmaceutical activity (Article 256 of the Criminal Code)
Tax evasion (Article 307 of the Criminal Code)
Giving bribes (Article 422 of the Criminal Code)
Suspects’ institutional affiliation
Date of offending
2011-2015
Sector affected by the offence
Health & Pharma
Court
Basic Court of Pristina
Current stage of the case in criminal procedure
1st instance procedure.
The Court of Appeals upheld the indictment of the Basic Court.
Procedural history
The indictment was filed on 14 June 2016 and the first hearings were held on 19 May 2017 and 25 May 2017.
- On 31 July 2017, the defendants’ requests to withdraw the indictment were overturned by the 1st instance court.
- On 02 November 2017, the Court of Appeals reinstated the case at the Basic Court of Pristina.
- On 26 February 2018, the chair of the Basic Court decided to divide the indictment into three separate procedures.
- In October 2018, after a procedural complaint made by the accused, the Court of Appeals reinstated the case at the Basic Court of Pristina.
- On 18 November 2019, the Court of Appeals overturned the defendants’ requests to withdraw the indictment, which made it possible to finally start the trial over three years after the indictment was filed.
Resolution of the case
Ongoing case
Applicable minimum and maximum penalty in the highest band for the actual offence in the case
Giving bribes: fine and up to 8 years in prison
Avoiding taxes: fine and up to 8 years in prison
Illegal pharmaceutical and medical activity: fine and up to 12 years in prison (if proven that somebody has died)
Irresponsible medical treatment: up to 3 years in prison (The Criminal Code)
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