Hospital director in custody for alleged sale of fake birth certificates
Xiangyang Jianqiao Hospital in Hubei Province.
The obstetrics and gynecology department of Xiangyang Jianqiao Hospital has been shut down, and the hospital's director was taken away for investigation on Tuesday, after the hospital was exposed for allegedly selling counterfeit birth certificates.
On November 6, a whistle blower named Shangguan Zhengyi on Weibo accused Xiangyang Jianqiao Hospital in Hubei Province of selling fake birth certificates for 96,000 yuan (US$13,190) each.
The post revealed that after over a year of undercover investigation, Shangguan found director Ye Youzhi of the hospital collaborated with various intermediaries and used social media platforms to publicly sell birth certificates and vaccination records.
According to the report, customers only needed to provide their personal information and pay 96,000 yuan to obtain a full set of authentic records created by the hospital, including prenatal care, hospitalization, childbirth, and discharge, following a "normal" childbirth process.
Two days after "giving birth," customers could visit the hospital to collect heel blood (usually collected from newborns) and obtain their birth certificates. The entire process takes about 7 days.
A fake birth certification (above) and a fake vaccination record provided by Xiangyang Jianqiao Hospital.
Furthermore, the hospital would generate a full set of vaccination information for them.
Intermediaries who sold birth certificates mentioned that 66,000 yuan of the 96,000 yuan went as a commission to the hospital director, with the remaining amount shared among the hospital's staff.
In response to these allegations, the local Health Commission said on Monday that they had contacted the police and the local health authorities have initiated an investigation.
