A shocking case of insurance fraud has sparked outrage online after a 42-year-old Shanghai woman, surnamed Xie, faked multiple miscarriages and forged medical documents to claim 66,200 yuan (Rs 7,83,841) in maternity insurance benefits. Notably, Xie is a high-earning employee at a foreign company with a monthly salary exceeding 30,000 yuan (Rs 3,55,215). She studied telecommunications and computer science at the university, reported the South China Morning Post. Her actions have raised concerns about the maternity indemnity program, which is funded by employers to cover medical expenses and provide financial support during maternity leave.
During her maternity leave in December, Xie recalled her previous success in claiming insurance benefits after a genuine miscarriage two years prior. This inspired her deceitful plan, following which she leveraged her computer skills to fabricate false medical records. She created convincing documents, including a maternity certificate and discharge summary, falsely claiming hospitalisation for a miscarriage.
She then submitted two online insurance claims, accompanied by the forged papers, and received a total of 66,200 yuan in maternity benefits. To cover her tracks, she destroyed all related paper documents and digital records after each claim, attempting to erase any evidence of her fraudulent activities.
Earlier this year, she tried to fabricate another miscarriage report to claim over 40,000 yuan in maternity insurance benefits. However, her luck ran out as the claim was rejected. Interestingly, just a month later in February, Xie gave birth to her first child and applied for maternity benefits. But, during a routine document review, officials raised red flags upon discovering five maternity insurance claims filed by Xie within four years. The authorities reported the case to the police, leading Xie to surrender and return the entire amount of fraudulently obtained money.
She said, ''As an older pregnant woman with poor health, I worried about medical costs. In desperation, I impulsively faked miscarriages to get the insurance money. I have already resigned from my job and I deeply regret what I have done.''
Shanghai Prosecutor Gong Xiaoting said China's online insurance application system, designed for convenience, can be illegally exploited by criminals using photo-editing technology.
The court found Xie guilty of fraud and gave her a one -and-a-half-year suspended jail term on August 16. In his statement, Judge Wang Xinyuan said her actions not only violated her company's property rights but also posed a serious threat to the social insurance systems.
The insurance fraud sent shockwaves across mainland social media and sparked a heated debate about the need for strict measures to prevent similar cases in the future.
One user wrote, ''For about 60,000 yuan, she has ruined her life and her children's future,'' while another commented, ''Xie's monthly salary of 30,000 yuan is not low in China, yet she still resorted to fraud. It seems greed knows no bounds.''
