A Prachinburi clinic has made the news after their owners have been called in by police to be questioned over claims by patients that they had been selling counterfeit Moderna coronavirus vaccines.
Kularb clinic, which is located in the Kabinburi district, was raided by officials on Tuesday after some of their customers alerted authorities that they had lost THB 1,500 for each dose of what was meant to be Moderna that they had received.
It was confirmed that Col. Pattanachai Pamornpibul of Wangg Takian Police would be questioning the clinic’s owners on Wednesday.
One customer, an unnamed female, confirmed that her family had given the clinic THB 6,000 for four doses.
However, when the day of the scheduled appointment came around for the jabs to be administered, the employees were acting suspiciously she said by not displaying any packaging of the ‘Moderna-branded’ vaccines.
When there were no side effects from being given these supposed vaccines, their suspicions grew stronger.
It was when a friend informed her that Moderna was not even officially available in Thailand at that time, that she thought to alert health officials to the activities of the clinic.
This then lead her to filing an official complaint with her local police department.
It is not until Q4 of 2021 that official supplies of Moderna are expected to arrive in Thailand.
4 million doses are scheduled to be delivered around that time. Any other stock available at that time is either on the black market, or counterfeit.
Col. Pattanachai revealed that the raid on Tuesday did not uncover any of the suspect fake vaccines.
The clinic, owned by Kularb Yamnok, specialises in pregnancy and child birth.
If it has been found to have been selling fake vaccines, they would be facing charges of fraud.
Upon searching the premises, officials seized a number of dangerous medicines found at the clinic being used to treat patients.
They are already facing charges for this, of not having a proper medical license and having possession of illegal pharmaceuticals.
The order made on Tuesday by authorities to close the clinic was indefinite.
