Serhiy Lovochkin demands the government to provide information on how it plans to solve catastrophic problems in the healthcare sector. A respective deputy inquiry has been submitted by a member of parliament from the OPPOSITION BLOC to Prime Minister Volodymyr Groisman.

“The implementation of a health care reform has failed in Ukraine. Reduced funding, low doctors’ salaries, high cost or lack of medicines made public health care a paid service with extremely low quality. In this regard, please inform me what urgent measures the government is taking to ensure a radical improvement in the provision of public health care services and medicines,” the deputy inquiry reads.

Serhiy Lovochkin said that due to inflation in 2016 the volume of medical subsidies will decrease by 33% in real terms compared to 2015. He added that in 2015 the health care budget had dropped from 4.2 to 3.5% of GDP when compared to 2013.

“The average salary of health care workers in 2015 was UAH 2853 against the average salary of UAH 4195 nationwide, medicines in hospitals are financed at the meager 8% of the demand. Drugs that should be provided under state programs have not been purchased for eighteen months,” the MP stated in his inquiry.

According to the MP, the lack of legislative regulation of a guaranteed package of health care services (provided to the public free of charge), in conditions of abject poverty of Ukrainians, deprived half of the nation of affordable health care.

He also noted a catastrophic situation with the provision of drugs that become unaffordable to the public.

“Inflation and devaluation of the national currency have led to higher prices for medicines. Rising utility tariffs consume people’s incomes leaving no money for health care. Even with available subsidies every Ukrainian faces a choice - buy food or get treatment,” the MP wrote in his inquiry.