Medical frauds by charities face severe penalties

The Ministry of Civil Affairs will strengthen oversight of nonprofit organizations that run medical assistance programs, and warned of severe punishments for those profiting from such programs, according to a circular released by the ministry recently.

The move followed scandals that some hospitals and enterprises, which claimed to offer charitable medical assistance, invited patients to "designated hospitals" where they were charged high medical fees, the circular said.

Beijing Youth Daily reported in September that Xinglin Care Fund, a charity authorized by China Charity Federation to help poor patients with cerebral palsy and epilepsy, lured them to a private hospital in Beijing with the promise of free treatment and a high success rate.