South China hospital closed over claims of fake HPV vaccines

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A hospital in south China's Hainan Province has had its business license revoked after an investigation found that it was illegally injecting people with the HPV vaccine, which prevents certain types of cancer, including cervical cancer.

According to a statement issued by the Health Commission of Hainan Province on Sunday, Boao-Yinfeng Health-care International Hospital has been found selling fake HPV 9 vaccine and illegally using it in injections to 38 customers since January 2018, charging 9,000 yuan (1,388 U.S. dollars) each time.

The provincial health regulator on April 18 slapped the hospital with administrative penalties including a warning, confiscation of illegal gains, as well as a fine of 8,000 yuan. The hospital will be faced with public prosecution for the misconduct.

Wang Lu (pseudonym) on Sunday morning told thepaper.cn that she was informed by the police on March 19 that the HPV vaccine she had at the hospital was fake, and that police were investigating.

The report also suggested that the vaccine could have been smuggled or from a pharmaceutical firm in Siping, northeast China's Jilin Province, citing a post on Sina Weibo by user WangxiAnna on April 22, who claimed that she had been given a fake injection at the hospital.

The provincial health commission said that it is investigating the origin of the vaccine as well as the suspicion that they could be fake.

The HPV vaccine is used to prevent a wide range of cancers caused by HPV in females between 9-26 years of age and is also given to males in some countries. The vaccine is offered only in Hong Kong and a number of foreign countries and was introduced to Hainan in May 2018, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

Source(s): Global Times