Health ministry strips eye surgery clinic of its license

July 27, BPN. The health ministry has revoked the license from Novy Zrok, the Belarusian subsidiary of the New Vision eye-surgery private clinic.

The clinic management provided “false documents with inaccurate information” and was using medical devices issued to a legal entity before its official registration, the ministry said.

The clinic’s shutdown would not affect the accessibility of ophthalmologic medical care in Belarus, the health ministry said, noting that the provider accounted for only 1.7 percent of all appointments.

New Vision clinics, located in Minsk, Mahiloŭ, Hrodna, Viciebsk, and Brest, have performed 1.5 million laser eye surgeries for cataracts, retinal diseases, and glaucoma, according to the company’s website.

Glaucoma patients are waiting for appointments at state clinics for months, one patient told BPN, speaking on the condition of anonymity. New Vision provided services for fees, and its appointment waiting time was significantly shorter, which was especially essential for patients in need of urgent care. 

New Vision management has responded to the health ministry’s move by announcing the closure of all clinics in Belarus and complete withdrawal from the market.

“The decision is not ours, but that of the licensing body, and we are obliged to comply with it,” its press release reads.

New Vision founder Aleh Kaŭryhin opened his first clinic in Belarus in the late 1990s. New Vision operates eye clinics in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Russia, the UK and Ukraine. The businessman has been living in Lithuania since 2012.