The Well being Ministry on Tuesday mentioned it might press prices in opposition to an ultra-Orthodox man who was fraudulently posing as a health care provider and providing COVID-19 diagnoses over the phone.
The case was reported by Channel 12, who contacted the person after fliers appeared within the Haredi neighborhood promising “Dr. Natan Har” may verify coronavirus over the telephone. He claimed to have the ability to detect in a cough whether or not the person was contaminated with the virus and charged NIS 50 ($14) for the service.
The tv community knowledgeable the Well being Ministry of the fraudster.
A Well being Ministry consultant, presenting herself as a buyer, contacted the suspect for his companies. He requested her to cough, earlier than saying: “Sure, sadly, you might have it. You’re carrying the virus,” earlier than performing the identical check on her son and likewise claiming he had COVID-19.
When the girl went to his residence to pay, he demanded NIS 250 (71$), the report mentioned.
A Well being Ministry consultant confronts a person who claims to have the ability to verify coronavirus circumstances on the telephone (display seize: Channel 12)
Well being Ministry inspectors then confronted the person, warning him to stop his actions instantly.
“My lawyer mentioned I may current myself as a health care provider, like Dr. Gav [a mattress store] or Dr. Inventory. I’m simply giving a session,” he informed them.
“Do you perceive that that is unsuitable?” the Well being Ministry representatives inquired in an alternate filmed by a hidden digital camera.
“I’ll cease doing it,” he mentioned.
Roni Berkowitz, head of the Well being Ministry’s Division of Enforcement and Inspection, mentioned: “The ministry views this severely. We’ll file a police grievance in opposition to him.”
The report didn’t specify how many individuals had been swindled.
The ultra-Orthodox neighborhood was hit more durable than the broader inhabitants within the coronavirus outbreak, with members gradual to undertake the federal government’s social distancing guidelines. Many locally eschew the web on non secular grounds, making them extra vulnerable to false medical claims.