Hanoi authorities have uncovered used medical equipment worth VND 3 billion (USD 156,000) being illegally imported into Vietnam.

Secondhand equipment could carry risky consequences.

Used medical equipment concealed within new equipment to avoid authorities.

Authorities discovered the batch of equipment yesterday in a storage house located at Alley 109, Truong Chinh Road, Thanh Xuan District, Hanoi. The property belongs to Doan Gia Trading and Technique Medical Equipment Services Co., Ltd.

The batch included a film coating machine, seven 3D and 4D ultrasound machines as well as other secondhand medical equipment which had been imported from overseas. At the time of inspection, Doan Quoc Trung, 33, Director of the company, was unable to provide any document showing the origin of the equipment.

Doan Gia Company placed this secondhand equipment among new equipment in an attempt to conceal them from authorities.

According to Hoang Dai Nghia, Deputy Head of the Market Management Team 14, the use of secondhand medical equipment is unsafe and could have severe consequences such as mistakes and errors when diagnosing or treating patients.

Nguyen Ngoc Ly, an official from the Economic Security Division of Hanoi’s Police Department, said that used medical equipment is prohibited to be imported into the country.

Relevant authorities have sealed the illegal batch of equipment and are further investigating whether the company had been selling these secondhand medical equipment.