Auditor General flags millions in unpaid statutory deductions for pharmacy council employees by Health Ministry

Statutory deductions amounting to $22.6 million from the salaries of employees at the Pharmacy Council of Jamaica were not paid over to Tax Administration Jamaica by the Ministry of Health and Wellness as at March 31, 2021, an audit by the Auditor General’s Department has revealed.

Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis, in her annual report, which was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, warned that the matter would be referred to the Financial Secretary for surcharge.

She noted that amounts were owed from as early as 2013 and up to the time of reporting (December 2024), the indebtedness had increased to $35.46 million.

This included penalty of $14.84 million and interest of $17.06 million.

According to Monroe Ellis, Section 5.13.13.2 of the Financial Instructions requires all entities to pay statutory deductions to TAJ within five working days of the effective date of deductions or earlier.

“Therefore, the tardiness in paying over the statutory deductions violates the respective statutes under which the amounts were deducted and resulted in the council incurring penalties and interest totalling $31.90 million.

This also denied the council’ employees’ right to benefits associated with the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) and the National Housing Trust (NHT) deducted from their salaries,” she said.

- Edmond Campbell

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