Proliferation of fake Covid certificates add to woes of Ukrainian officials grappling with  a new record high in infections and deaths.

To understand the scale of the problem Viktor Lyashko ordered Friday to set up a special commission that will trace severe cases and deaths involving the vaccinated people.

Collecting data on hospitalized people who allegedly have forged proof of vaccination is a ‘complex issue,’ said the minister in an interview Friday, adding that he the newly established commission led by the chief sanitary doctor will ‘consider each case – from [patients with] complications to lethal cases if they involved a vaccination status document’.

The commission experts will investigate all such cases as it can impact the ‘evidence base of immunobiological drugs’.

Faking Covid documents is a criminal offence in Ukraine under art. 358 of its Criminal Code that can get a fraudster up to 2 years in prison.  The Ukrainian goverment said in September it was set to toughen punishment for the offence.