THE Medical and Dental Private Practitioners of Zimbabwe Association (MDPPZA) has expressed dismay over a witchhunt on its members who are being arrested for overdrawing from Premier Service Medical Aid Society’s (PSMAS) with some instances for overcharging an amount as measly as ZW$1 000 for services.
By Kudakwashe Pembere
Working with the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC), the medical aid service provider instituted a blitz against doctors on fraud allegations.
In an interview with MDPPZA president Dr Johannes Marisa, PSMAS is claiming medical services providers were using wrong tariff codes, a fraudulent activity.
PSMAS is scapegoating alleging fraud. They claim some of the service providers overdrew money from PSMAS in the form of using wrong tariff codes. When claiming service providers put a tariff code. Someone who looks at tariffs at PSMAS notices a wrong code, they advise the service provider to input the correct code. Now they are alleging they lost a lot of money because of wrong tariffs which was tantamount to fraud,” he said.
He also stated that over 1 000 service providers are being witch-hunted
“We are saying no and that it is those practitioners who actually stood by PSMAS when others were rejecting them. And now they want to witch-hunt and I am told more than 1 000 service providers are being hunted right now,” Dr Marisa said.
PSMAS actions, Dr Marisa said, will see them rejecting its cardholders.
“This is going to be a very, very bad thing because no one is going to accept PSMAS. It is going to put all civil servants under difficult conditions because when we reject PSMAS it means no one will take PSMAS cardholders. So you cannot victimise someone for something that you claim is overpayment and it is suprising someone was charged for ZWL$1 000. That is only victimisation. After spending two years without paying and then you start finding excuses to charge a doctor or laboratory scientist, it is very bad,” he said.
In a statement, MDPPZA said this matter should not be treated as criminal.
“We are of the strong opinion that this matter is a civil not a criminal one and should be treated as such. Engagements with the doctors, service providers and the parent ministry who is the regulator were not done as prescribed by law prior to this exercise.
