The Ministry of Health has rejected a claim raised by opposition MP Ganesh Mahipaul that doctors are being required to provide banking information through CORTEX, a system being introduced as part of the government’s digitisation of the public health sector.
In a Facebook statement, Mahipaul said doctors had raised concerns with him that the information being requested went beyond their medical functions and included sensitive personal and banking details. He called for any compulsory collection of additional information to be paused until the government explained its purpose, legal basis and safeguards, and consulted the medical profession.
Mahipaul framed the claim conditionally, saying that ‘if ‘doctors were being asked for such information, they and the wider public service deserved a clear explanation. He also called for an engagement involving the ministries of Public Service and Health, representatives of doctors and the relevant data protection authorities.
Responding in a press release, the Health Ministry said Mahipaul’s statements were based on unverified claims. It said CORTEX was designed to improve accountability across the pharmaceutical supply chain, from procurement and inventory management to the distribution and dispensing of medication. The system also forms part of a wider digital health programme that includes the introduction of electronic patient records, the ministry said.
According to the ministry, doctors and other authorised staff must be identified and their professional credentials verified before they can access systems containing sensitive information. It said the staff concerned had been told what information was required, why it was requested and how it would be used.
The ministry rejected the suggestion that CORTEX was designed to collect doctors’ banking information as part of its health-sector functions. It said no evidence had been presented to it that the system was doing so. Any doctor who believed banking information had been requested for an unexplained or unauthorised purpose should provide the specific request for immediate review, it added.
Mahipaul had asked who would have access to information entered into the system, where it would be stored, how long it would be retained and whether it could be shared with third parties. Citing the Data Protection Act 2023, he said public servants should also be told whether providing the information was mandatory.
The ministry said it welcomed questions about data protection and cybersecurity, but maintained that public allegations should be grounded in verified information. Its release did not set out the specific fields doctors are being asked to complete in CORTEX.
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