Ex-Health Minister of Georgia alleges involvement of 60 doctors in oncological medication scheme

Sixty doctors are allegedly implicated in a scheme involving the prescription of oncological medications of questionable origin, as claimed by former Minister of Health Zurab Azarashvili in a recent statement posted on his personal Facebook page, reflecting on his two-year tenure at the body. 

Azarashvili noted that while contracting medical services and procuring drugs directly from manufacturers had slashed the cost of expensive medications by 50 percent and doubled the quantity procured, challenges persisted in ensuring accurate oncological diagnoses and the conscientious prescription of drugs in line with guidelines. 

He highlighted instances where thousands of unregistered oncological drugs of dubious origin were imported from a suspect country. 

 

Allegedly, at least 60 oncologists were involved in this scheme, submitting funding requests totaling millions of GEL based on Form 100 submissions, leading to the prescription and utilization of drugs of unknown origin for oncology patients. 

Discussions on this matter have reportedly taken place within professional councils, with case materials forwarded to law enforcement agencies, he said. 

Azarashvili cited these concerns among others as reasons for maintaining limits on oncology per patient and initiating early oncology diagnosis as a pilot program solely in state clinics. He mentioned that due to cost-saving measures, the total budget for oncology in 2024 was estimated at up to 350 million GEL, an increase from 2012’s 20 million GEL allocation.

Furthermore, Azarashvili addressed dissatisfaction with the treatment of pediatric oncology cases, stating, “there was significant dissatisfaction in the treatment of pediatric oncology patients. 

 

Following numerous discussions with parents, we implemented a program for overseas treatment of children.” Since August of the previous year, this program has operated in seven international-standard multidisciplinary clinics across three countries, providing quality care to over 60 pediatric oncology patients.