Report of Healthcare Minister Vladimir Karanik, Presidential Aide Aleksandr Kosinets

Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko heard out a report of Healthcare Minister Vladimir Karanik and Presidential Aide Aleksandr Kosinets on 21 May.

The Healthcare Ministry has prepared a draft executive order of the government “On the list of procedures (tests, manipulations) concerning the licensed works and services in healthcare”. A decision was made to harmonize the necessity to adopt this document with the head of state. A similar document was passed by the Council of Ministers in March 2011. However, according to the Healthcare Ministry, now it is necessary to revise its provisions.

“The issue pertains to licenses, permissions, prohibitions. Some time ago this serious issue was raised by the business community, by ordinary people, and especially by those who wanted to perform licensed procedures. Since then, we have made many steps to settle many issues concerning permissions and other things, give more freedom to people, the society, and the business community. I am keeping an eye on these matters,” the president said.

The authors of the draft executive order want, on the one hand, to include the norms of Decree No. 326 “On the improvement of licensing” in the revised document. On the other hand, they want to handle the issue with complaints and court proceedings regarding the quality of medical services provided in private massage rooms and beauty salons. They deem it necessary to update licensing regulations for wellness centers and beauty salons. According to Vladimir Karanik, the authors of the document wanted to promote the development of the market of medical services and ensure the safety of all procedures.

“There is a circle of people whom I can ask to look at the licensing regulations of the Healthcare Ministry and to think if they are necessary. The draft executive order outlined in the Healthcare Ministry was not rejected, but I decided to discuss this issue with you once again. Probably, there are too many regulations in certain fields,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “For example, massage. Should the Healthcare Ministry impose excessive regulations there and demand that such services are provided by, for example, doctors? Maybe, we can also address other things.”

According to the head of state, after the today’s conversation he will discuss the topic with other specialists once again. The president stressed that there should not be superfluous regulations. “We will not benefit from it. We will have too many civil servants, and part of those workers who want give a massage or perform other procedures which are much simpler than, for example, surgeries will be irritated. Should we interfere with such things?” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “I just want to warn you that bureaucracy is inadmissible here.”