SNS Objects to Health Ministry's Amendment, It May Threaten Work of Beauticians

Bratislava, 22 May (TASR) - The junior coalition Slovak National Party (SNS) claims that new rules included in an amendment to the law on the protection, promotion and development of public health sponsored by the Health Ministry could threaten the work of beauticians. MP Adam Lucansky (SNS) told a news conference on Friday that, in line with the new rules, facilities providing human body care services would no longer be allowed to perform activities classified as medical procedures, such as those that disrupt the integrity of the skin. According to Lucansky, Health Minister Kamil Sasko (Voice-SD) has already pledged that this part of the amendment will be withdrawn and revised. Part of the proposed legislation prohibits human body care facilities from carrying out activities in which the integrity of human skin is breached, except for piercing, ear piercing, tattooing, permanent make-up, cosmetic skin cleansing and pedicure-related procedures. "There's insufficient legal certainty, as what constitutes a breach of skin integrity isn't clearly defined. We deem that some procedures currently performed by beauticians will be transferred purely to the health-care sector," stated Lucansky. He added that a discussion was held on the draft at the Health Ministry prior to the second reading of the draft. "We requested that there should be no blanket ban on beauticians performing various procedures, such as laser hair removal or mesotherapy. Under the new rules, they wouldn't be able to perform these procedures at all, and from our point of view, that would be devastating," said the MP. According to Lucansky, the Health Ministry has proposed several variants. "There would be a clarification of when an intervention into a certain depth of the skin is involved, and when it wouldn't be considered a medical procedure," he said. He finds it strange that procedures that interfere with the integrity of the skin should not be performed, but there is no problem with piercings, ear piercings and tattoos. The respective draft amendment was advanced to its second reading in April. ko/df