At least ten vaccination centres in Greece are suspected of issuing fake vaccine certificates, with some healthcare workers having reportedly presented forged documents to avoid suspension.
The Greek National Transparency Authority (NTA) is examining the activities of at least ten coronavirus vaccine centres in different parts of the country due to “initial indications of a fraudulent scheme”.
According to a report from the Greek newspaper Ekathimerini, there have been a number of fraudulent documents detected by authorities after it was revealed that a health centre in central Greece was suspected of handing out at least 44 fake certificates.
On Monday, evidence was presented to a local prosecutor regarding the 44 fake documents which came from a health centre in Palamas that has issued 31,296 vaccinations, bringing into question how many of the certificates are genuine.
According to Ekathimerini, the fake documents were issued by an employee who had access to the electronic vaccination platform and simply marked certain people as being vaccinated.
In Thessaloniki, four healthcare workers allegedly presented forged vaccination certificates in order to avoid being suspended from their jobs after the Greek government mandated all healthcare workers to take the vaccine.
The three nursing staff and one administrative employee later confessed that they had presented the forged documents.
Following the mandatory vaccine deadline of September 1st, at least 5,895 healthcare workers were suspended from their jobs for not getting the inoculation.
The large number led the Greek government last week to declare that it would give healthcare workers a second chance to get the first shot of the vaccine and introduced an amendment that would allow healthcare workers to return to work if they took the jab.
A Greek labour union official has also claimed that as many as 10,000 hospital workers could face suspension for not taking the vaccine, which could have an effect on the Greek healthcare system.