State broadcaster investigation found agencies sent stand-ins, health certificates were sold online, and restaurants knowingly accepted unverified or forged documents.
An undercover investigation by state broadcaster CCTV has found that hospitals across China are issuing health certificates without proper medical exams, raising alarms over potential public health risks.
In a report aired Sunday, CCTV found that eight hospitals and screening centers — in cities from Nanning in southern China to Shenyang in the northeast — routinely skipped key tests and failed to verify patient identities. Health certificates are required for workers in industries such as food service, childcare, public venues, and cosmetics.
The investigation found widespread misconduct beyond hospitals alone. Some labor agencies arranged for others to take medical exams on behalf of workers. A black market offered cheap fake certificates, while restaurants knowingly accepted documents that were forged or improperly issued.
The findings follow a similar exposé in January, which uncovered substandard health screenings in Shijiazhuang, capital of the northern Hebei province. That report led to a joint investigation and the suspension of several medical institutions.
Chinese law requires annual health checks for workers in high-contact or hygiene-sensitive industries. Employees must be free of infectious diseases such as cholera, dysentery, hepatitis, tuberculosis, and skin infections before they can be cleared to work. But CCTV’s investigation found many institutions are ignoring those rules.
A fake health certificate. From @CCTV on Weibo
At the Sixth People’s Hospital in Nanning, capital of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, a CCTV reporter was issued a health certificate after submitting an empty stool sample and skipping key steps such as providing a medical history and undergoing a physical exam. The certificate cost 103 yuan ($15) and was ready within three days.
Similar lapses were found at other hospitals. In Zhengzhou, capital of the central Henan province, one hospital replaced medical exams with traditional Chinese pulse diagnosis, while another issued a certificate after only a chest X-ray, a finger-prick blood test, and a quick blood pressure reading — all completed in under an hour.
Beyond hospital misconduct, some labor agencies exploited loopholes to offer “substitute testing” — letting others take health checks on behalf of food service workers, according to the investigation.
At Huachen Hospital in the northeastern Liaoning province, a 36-year-old male reporter was issued a certificate after his younger female colleague completed the screening using his medical application form. No staff questioned the gender mismatch or verified her identity.
The investigation also uncovered a black market for fake health certificates. Online ads offered same-day documents with “no attendance needed” for as little as 15 yuan. The fakes featured QR codes that mimicked official ones but couldn’t pass local health department verification.
Restaurants were also found complicit, with some knowingly accepting fake or improperly issued health certificates.
Authorities have yet to respond publicly, but the revelations have sparked outcry on Chinese social media. A related hashtag on microblogging platform Weibo has drawn more than 30 million views, with many users voicing concerns about food safety and regulatory failure.
“Health certificates are meant to screen for diseases like hepatitis and tuberculosis,” wrote Zhang Jing, a lawyer with over 9 million Weibo followers. “If people can buy fake ones for 15 yuan while others follow the rules, who will keep playing fair? Hospitals are selling certificates, restaurants look the other way, and regulators barely check or punish.”
Editor: Apurva.
(Header image: Bubaone/Getty Creative/VCG)