PREMIER Medical Aid Society (PSMAS) members voted unanimously on Wednesday to disband the holding company after it was revealed that the entity had served as a vehicle for misappropriation of US$60 million from the society.
The radical move was made at a special annual general meeting where a forensic audit report revealed that the money was lost due to suspected fraudulent activities with blame heaped on the holding company, home to 70 employees.
The money was lost in the period between 2018 and 2022 July through a defective claim management system and the purchase of properties by officials that were not registered with the company’s management systems.
The forensic audit team investigating PSMAS financial woes also made shocking revelations as it exposed massive fraud perpetrated by executives.
The probe found that millions of dollars were siphoned through various fraudulentmeans, leaving members with significant financial losses.
It also emerged that the holding company’s initial mandate was to integrate health and financial services by incorporating PSMAS, Premier Service Medical Investments (PSMI), Premier Service Medical Aid Society Zambia and Premier Service Microfinance.
However, while presenting the forensic audit report, the head investigator Reynolds Muza revealed that the holding company's actions had ultimately proven detrimental to the society, exposing members to undue risk and compromising their access to essential medical care — despite having medical aid coverage.
The forensic audit depicted a holding company that has not only failed in its mandate but also jeopardised the beneficiaries’ service.
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Muza said the holding company diverted resources to fund luxurious developments, leaving members vulnerable and without access to the critical healthcare they deserved.
“At the time PSMI was struggling to pay for member services to the providers, the holding company was prioritising their salaries, hourly allowances, international trips, yet members were failing to receive basic medical attention from providers [such] as drugs at the pharmacy and hospitals,” he said.
Muza also told members that the holding company fraudulently took over 10% of every member’s contribution.
“The holding company charged initially 3% of the total contribution coming from the government, 5% went to PSMI, 2% to the Premier Service Microfinance. It means that they took over 10%,” he said.
Muza said the forensic audit had also uncovered thousands of statements that could be used to sue all the officials implicated in the PSMAS fraudulent scheme including medical professionals.
He, however, advised that it would be in the best interest of the members to claim their monies from medical professionals that duped them.
“We have got more than 1 000 statements ready for court, but court action might go [for] five or 10 years or more.
“All those doctors must pay back. The statements clearly show that the money is there, we have the bank account numbers where the money went to, you can even go to their banks and the evidence is there,” Muza said.
Meanwhile, the investigation uncovered 34 433 cases of identical medical procedures allegedly performed on the same day, with Harare and Gweru accounting for the majority at 24 366 and 4 032 cases, respectively.
Furthermore, a staggering 292 633 multiple claims for different medical procedures performed on the same day were unearthed across PSMAS centres.
Harare recorded 60 368 cases of identical medical procedures claimed to have been performed on the same day for the same members, raising serious questions about the integrity of the system.
