[Photo] Jeju starts procedure to revoke license for controversial Greenland Intl. Medical Center

The Jeju Provincial Government has revoked the medical business license of a Chinese corporation to operate what would have been South Korea’s first for-profit hospital. The Greenland Group, which is based in Shanghai, recently requested an extension on the Mar. 4 deadline for the opening of its Greenland International Medical Center, but Jeju denied the extension. Jeju approved the hospital based on the condition that it only treat foreign patients and begin operations by Mar. 4, but the Greenland Group protested this condition on the claim that it was illegal. The conflict erupted in administrative struggles that have prevented the hospital from opening on Mar. 4 as required by South Korean law. (Huh Ho-joon, Jeju correspondent)