Barcelona is liberally supplied with private health institutions, and most are on the ‘direct settlement’ lists of most major health insurers. These range from general clinics such as the Centro Medico Tecnon, maternity clinics such as the Clinica Instituto Dexeus, and speciality ophthalmology clinics such as the Clinica Barraquer, named after its revered founder José Barraquer, the father of modern refractive surgery. Note that the public health system also sub-contracts specialist referrals to approved private hospitals.