In pharmacies, concern is growing. Shortages are affecting certain treatments, and prescription fraud could worsen the situation, in particular on drugs to treat cancer. But what is it exactly? “Patients are sent to pharmacies with fake prescriptions for cancer drugs. The boxes are then recovered by traffickers and then illegally resold abroad.noted France info who led a investigationpublished on August 22.
And the fraud is obviously very simple to carry out, assures the French media. To get one of these fake prescriptions, all you have to do is spot an advertisement circulating on social networks. The one chosen by France info depicts a so-called doctor who promises future recruits a salary of several hundred euros a day. The only condition to be “eligible” for this fraud? Be reimbursed at 100% by your mutual or benefit from the CMU (universal health coverage), which will make it possible to recover medically without having to advance any costs.
In the series #NoFraud here is what is circulating on social networks these days… The Fraud Cartel drug trafficking version… #SocialFraudpic.twitter.com/dQApSWqZC1
— Charles Prats APM ⚖️ (@CharlesPrats) August 3, 2022
Therefore, journalists from France info were able to contact the instigators of this fraud, and after giving name, first name, age and city via Telegram (an encrypted messaging service), a fake prescription – which looks exactly like a real one – arrived in their mailbox. On the header, the name of a Parisian hospital and the name of a drug against ovarian cancer. His price ? More than 4,500 euros per box.
Against this single box, the interlocutor of France info offers 200 euros delivered by hand, and 1,000 euros for four boxes. The drug will then be resold abroad, with a more than comfortable margin: several hundred, even thousands of euros on each box, and all on the back of Health Insurance.
Several hospitals and medical offices have been affected by these identity thefts, in particular the European hospital in Marseille. Since the beginning of the year, “fifteen“False prescriptions have reportedly been spotted by the pharmacies with whom they work in collaboration to make as many reports as possible. Some hospitals have even estimated that more than four million euros the amount diverted because of these false prescriptions.
How to counter this scam?
Health Insurance does not provide official figures on these practices – the first reports of which took place in 2019 -, but judges the phenomenon in “huge increase”. For their part, pharmacists are trying to curb this practice, but the task is proving complex. “The quality of false prescriptions has improved significantly and may require the vigilance of pharmacists”, recognizes Alin Delgutte, member of the National Order of Pharmacists. “Now there are no more spelling mistakes, sometimes we even have the doctor’s stamp with an RPPS number”he continues.
Faced with this threat, the Order of Pharmacists and Health Insurance are considering more regular use of e-prescription, i.e. prescriptions stored on a secure server and accessible through a QR code system. This operation should be in place by the end of 2024, according to a government promise.
Source :
- INVESTIGATION. “200 to 1,000 euros per day”: scams for false prescriptions for anti-cancer drugs on the rise, France infoAugust 22, 2022
- Health Insurance.
