一人でも多くの方に、「見える喜び」を
ロート製薬、Alina Vision社設立に参画
独自のビジネスモデルで社会に貢献！
世界中に“患者が無料で白内障治療を受けられるモデル”※1を展開
2018年2月21日
ロート製薬株式会社（本社：大阪市、社長：吉野俊昭）は、世界中の人々の「見える喜び」をサポートする活動の一環として、Alina Vision社設立に出資致します。同社は“Affordable
Eye Care Model”によって、新興国を中心に多くの患者を失明の危機から救ってきた社会起業家David Green氏やThe Fred
Hollows Foundation等が中心となり、これまでの活動をよりスピーディーかつ広範囲で行うことを目指して設立するものです。ロート製薬は、同社の理念に共鳴し、その活動を支援することで、ボランティアや寄付にとどまらない、社会貢献に繋がる持続可能なビジネスモデルの普及にチャレンジ致します。
※1：“Affordable Eye Care Model”
Alina Vision社について
設立の背景
図1．世界の視覚障害原因（2015） IAPBより
「すべての人に質の高い眼科医療を、持続可能なビジネスモデルで提供する」為に、David Green氏（Executive Director）、Ben
Midberry氏（Managing Director）、The Fred Hollows Foundation（Co-Founder）はAlina
Vision社を設立しました。International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness（IAPB）によると世界中には2.5億人の方に視覚障害があり、白内障は簡易的な手術で治せるにも関わらず、25.8％に当たる方が白内障により視覚障害があります。白内障は低所得国の主な失明原因となっており、この課題の背景には、医師不足と共に旧来の高価な眼科医療が貧困によって受けられないことが、原因となっています。
図2．インド、マドゥライ県にあるAravind Eye Hospital
“Affordable Eye Care Model”とは、高品質な医療サービスを一律に提供しながらも、同時に提供する周辺サービスを差別化することによって、それぞれの患者に合わせた価格帯（払える患者は一般価格、少し払える患者は格安価格、払えない患者は完全無料）で医療を提供できるようにするもので、収益を上げながら、完全無料患者を2割以上受け入れることができるモデルです。David
Green氏はインドの「Aravind Eye Hospitals」※2と共にこのモデルを推進、2016年の一年で400万人もの患者を治療。今回、自らが中心となってAlina
Vision社を設立することにより、同モデルを取り入れた病院の立ち上げ、既存病院への導入を加速させることで、すべての人に質の高い眼科医療を提供し、一人でも多くの方を白内障による失明の危機から助けることに取り組んでいきます。
※2：Aravind Eye Hospitalsはインドの南部に12の病院・診療所を持つ眼科専門病院です。2016年の治療患者数は400万人にも上っており、46万例もの手術を行い、年間の手術数は世界一です。
Alina Vision社概要
図3．Alina Vision、Executive DirectorのDavid Green氏
- 商号：ALINA VISION PTE. LTD.
- 所在地：50 Raffles Place, #06-00 Singapore land tower, Singapore
- 参画企業（共同創立者）：David Green氏（Executive Director）、Ben Midberry氏（Managing Director）、The Fred
Hollows Foundation（Co-Founder）、ロート製薬株式会社
- 事業内容：病院の設立、既存病院へのコンサルティング
- 設立目的：すべての人に質の高い眼科医療を、持続可能なビジネスモデルで提供する
- 設立年月日：2017年7月7日
- 資本金：120万USドル＝約1.27億円
- David Green（Executive Director）：“Affordable Eye Care Model”の構築をインド中心に30年以上行ってきた社会起業家です。世界的に有名な「オーロラボ社」の設立に多大な貢献をし、白内障治療のためのレンズが通常約300ドルしていたところ、利幅を圧縮する事にて同様の品質のものを約2ドルで提供することでレンズ市場を拡大。「オーロラボ社」のレンズは“Affordable
Eye Care Model”を構成する重要な要素の一つとなっています。
- Ben Midberry（Managing Director）：低所得コミュニティのための自立的経済発展を支援するビジネスファイナンスに経験が深く、Alina Visionを立ち上げる前は、ドイチェ・アセット・マネジメント株式会社サステナブル投資部
部長として「Eye Fund Ⅰ」という、“Affordable Eye Care Model”を取り入れた眼科病院の為のソーシャルファンドを率いてきました。
- The Fred Hollows Foundation（Co-Founder）：予防可能な失明を世界中から無くす為に、眼科治療からスタッフの教育、医療設備の整備までをサポートしているオーストラリアの国民はじめ政府や国際的な資金提供機関からも支持されている財団です。財団はシドニーに25年前に設立され、世界25か国で活動。既に200万人もの患者を失明の危機から救いました。
ロート製薬の参画目的
ロート製薬は、アイケアのリーティングカンパニーとして世界中に「見える喜び」を届ける為に、これまでアジアやアフリカで無償眼科検診や白内障治療の支援などの眼科支援活動を行ってきました。しかしながら、手術で治せるはずの白内障が失明原因の一位という国はまだたくさん存在するのが現実です。この社会問題に継続的に取り組むには持続可能な仕組みが必要です。今回、ロート製薬がAlina
Vision社設立に参画する目的、それはもっと多くの方に、且つ持続的に支援の手を差し伸べるためです。ロート製薬は単なる寄付ではなく、投資という形でAlina
Vision社の設立と発展に参画し、よりスピーディーにより多くの方を助けるべく、世界中に持続可能なビジネスモデルですべての人に質の高い眼科医療の提供を目指します。
図4．“Affordable Eye Care Model”
質の高い眼科製品をリーズナブルな価格で仕入れ、高品質の眼科治療をより効率的に提供できる仕組みを導入することで、それぞれの患者に合わせた価格帯（払える患者は一般価格、少し払える患者は格安価格、払えない患者は完全無料）で医療を提供。収益も上げながら、完全無料患者を2割以上受け入れることができるモデル。
図5．Alina Visionへの投資とリターンの流れとAlina VisionとAlina Vision Hospitalsとの関係
- 「NEVER SAY NEVER」は、ロート製薬株式会社の登録商標（登録第5838870号）です。
Delivering the "Joy of Seeing" to More People
Rohto Pharmaceutical to join in the launch of Alina Vision
Contributing to Society with a Unique Business Model
Expand a "business model with free cataract treatment" *1 to the world
Rohto Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (headquartered in Osaka City; President:
Toshiaki Yoshino) is pleased to announce our investment in the launch of
Alina Vision as a part of our challenge in supporting the "joy of
seeing" for people all over the world. Alina Vision is being launched
by respected international eye health organization, The Fred Hollows Foundation
with social entrepreneurs, including David Green, who have been involved
with saving many people from vision loss, particularly in emerging nations.
The company is being established with the purpose of providing assistance
through the "Affordable Eye-Care Model" more speedily and in
a wider area. Rohto Pharmaceutical appreciates the company's cause and
takes a challenge in obtaining a sustainable business model that contributes
to society beyond making donations or volunteering.
*1 "Affordable Eye-Care Model"
About Alina Vision
Company Background
Figure 1: Causes of Visual Impairment Worldwide (2015) Source: IAPB
To provide high quality eye-care to everyone in a sustainable business
model, co-founders David Green (Executive Director), Ben Midberry (Managing
Director) and The Fred Hollows Foundation (Co-Founder) have launched Alina
Vision together. According to the International Agency for the Prevention
of Blindness (IAPB), 253 million people worldwide suffer from visual impairment.
Even though cataracts can be treated with a simple surgical procedure,
25.8% suffer from visual impairment due to cataracts. Cataract is the leading
cause of blindness in low-income countries. This is due to a shortage of
doctors and outdated eye care business models that result in low treatment
volumes, efficiency, and high prices that people with low incomes cannot
afford.
Figure 2: Aravind Eye Hospital located in Madurai, India
The "Affordable Eye-Care Model" is a business model that adopts
a sliding scale of prices depending on the patient’s ability to pay by
providing a consistent high-quality eye-care for all alongside a diversified
range of related services (patients who can afford the regular fee will
pay the full amount; patients who only afford to pay a little will pay
a reduced amount; patients who cannot afford the fees at all are treated
for free). This allows the service to be able to accept over 20% of non-paying
patients in total, while also making a profit. David Green has been involved
with "Aravind Eye Hospitals"*2 in India in promoting this particular
business model that has successfully treated a total of 4 million patients
in 2016. And now, Mr. Green has taken a leadership role in launching Alina
Vision to accelerate the opening of clinics with this business model and
implement the program at existing hospitals to provide high-quality eye-care,
and save as many people from sight loss due to cataracts.
*2 Aravind Eye Hospitals is a group of 12 hospitals and clinics specializing
in eye-care in the south of India. The group treated a total of 4 million
patients in 2016, and conducted 460,000 surgeries: the largest number of
surgeries per year in the world.
Alina Vision Company Profile
Figure 3: David Green, EXECUTIVE DIRECTORE, Alina Vision
- Company Name: ALINA VISION PTE. LTD.
- Company Address：50 Raffles Place, #06-00, Singapore Land Tower, Singapore
- Business Partners (Co-Founders): David Green (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR), Ben Midberry (MANAGING DIRECTOR), The
Fred Hollows Foundation (Co-Founder), Rohto Pharmaceutical
- Main Business: Opening hospitals; consultation services to existing hospitals.
- Business Purpose: Providing high quality eye-care to all income strata using a sustainable
business model.
- Date of Establishment: July 7, 2017
- Capital: 1.2 million US dollars (July 7, 2017) ＝ approx. 127.4 million yen
- David Green (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): A social entrepreneur who has been developing the "Affordable Eye-Care
Model" for more than 30 years in many areas, especially in India.
Mr. Green has provided tremendous support for the establishment of the
world-famous Aurolab, which has been making the market for cataract treatment
lenses more affordable with costs for lenses going from $300 down to $2
by reducing production costs, lowering margins and helping to adapt the
eye care business model to high-volumes, and low-costs. Low cost medical
consumables like the ones pioneered by Aurolab are an integral part of
the "Affordable Eye-Care Model."
- Ben Midberry (MANAGING DIRECTOR): Mr. Midberry has a lot of experience in financing companies that serve
low-income communities with profitable social enterprise business models.
Prior to co-founding Alina Vision, he was a Vice President at Deutsche
Bank's Global Social Finance group, where he led its lending to healthcare
organizations and managed the Deutsche Bank Eye Fund I, a social investment
fund for eye hospitals using the "Affordable Eye-Care Model."
- The Fred Hollows Foundation (Co-Founder): The Fred Hollows Foundation is a non-profit international development
organization focusing on treating and preventing blindness, training doctors,
nurses and health workers and providing support to medical facilities.
The Foundation was established in Sydney, Australia 25 years ago and is
supported by the Australian public, the Australian Government and international
funders. It operates in 25 countries around the world and has saved over
two million people from blindness.
Rohto's Goal in Investing
As a leader among eye-care companies, Rohto Pharmaceutical has been involved
with various eye-care support activities, such as providing cataract treatment
and free eye exams in Asia and Africa in order to deliver the "Joy
of Seeing" to the world. However, in reality, cataracts remain the
number one cause of blindness in many countries even though it can be treated
by surgery. We need a sustainable system to tackle this continuous problem.
This is why Rohto Pharmaceutical made a decision to join Alina Vision.
Rohto Pharmaceutical wants to get involved with Alina Vision not by making
donations, but through investments so that we can participate in the company's
development and spread this sustainable business model worldwide to provide
high-quality eye-care to everyone.
Figure 4: Affordable Eye-Care Model
A business model that buys high-quality eye-care products at a lower cost and provides high-quality eye-care to patients more efficiently. It adopts a scaling of payments depending on the patient (patients who can afford the regular fee will pay the full amount; patients who only afford to pay a little will pay a reduced amount; patients who cannot afford the fees at all are treated for free). This allows the service to be able to accept over 20% non-paying patients in total, while also making a profit.
Figure 5: Investment fund flows, Alina Vision's returns and the relationship
between Alina Vision and Alina Vision hospitals
- "NEVER SAY NEVER" is a registered trademark (Registration number
5838870) of Rohto Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.