Authorities raided 17 state-run hospitals and companies in Taichung yesterday, seizing evidence and questioning 31 people in an ongoing corruption probe into suspected medical equipment sales kickbacks.
The Taichung Veterans General Hospital (TVGH) and two other regional medical centers run by the Ministry of Health and Welfare — Changhua Hospital and Nantou Hospital — were among those raided.
Among the suspects listed in the investigation are two prominent senior physicians at TVGH — head of urology Ou Yen-chuan (歐宴泉), and neurosurgery chief Shen Chiung-chyi (沈炯祺).
Ou’s naming has raised eyebrows, as he was on the medical team that assessed and granted medical parole to former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
Investigators searched Ou’s office and seized documents and other evidence, and said they would wait until Ou’s return from abroad to question him.
According to a statement by the Agency Against Corruption (AAC), the investigation centered on senior doctors and hospital officials reportedly colluding with a medical equipment supplier to rig bids, for which they allegedly received kickback payments.
“The procurement concerned urological catheter and accessories. It is suspected that the company paid cash directly to department head doctors at the three respective public hospitals. The total bribe money paid amounted to about NT$3 million [US$97,370],” AAC Central Taiwan Branch head Hsu Wan-hsiang (許萬相) said. “We found that in related procurement cases, this company secured tenders for urological catheter equipment at the three hospitals.”
Of the 31 people questioned during the raids, 15 were questioned as suspects and 16 as witnesses.
According to the AAC statement, the equipment supplier’s owners, surnamed Su (蘇) and Huang (黃), allegedly devised the kickback scheme in collaboration with hospital officials and doctors, in which the supplied equipment received testing approval, despite not meeting requirements, and the tender bids were rigged to match only that supplier’s specifications.
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