Eight people indicted in CT scanner affair in Piešťany

Police have charged eight people for violation of obligations in the management of foreign assets regarding the overpriced purchase of a CT scanner for the "Alexander Winter" Hospital in Piešťany. If found guilty, they could each face up to 10-15 years in prison. The hospital wanted to purchase a CT scanner in 2012 but after the ruling Smer party nominees took over its management, it scrapped the tender and announced a new one. It was won by the Košice based company Medical Group SK, which should have delivered the device for almost €1.6 million, by about one million euro more than the hospital in the Czech town of Havlíčkúv Brod paid for a similar device for example. Additionally, the company was connected with the then Parliamentary Speaker Pavol Paška. A doctor and a nurse who were members in the hospital's management board reported the excessive price to the media. The scandal led to the resignation of Health Minister Zuzana Zvolenská last November.