Medicine Shortages Expose Strain in Russia’s Northwest

Volunteers have been called in to deliver prescription medicines to patients in Russia’s Murmansk region after complaints about long queues, repeated clinic visits and restricted pharmacy opening hours.

Twelve volunteers had delivered about 50 packages directly to patients by October 26, regional Health Minister Dmitry Panychev said. The home deliveries began two days earlier.

The intervention comes as Murmansk authorities attempt to reorganize the system for publicly funded medicines.

At a meeting on October 26, journalists showed Governor Andrei Chibis photographs of queues dominated by elderly patients. Residents described having to make repeated trips between clinics and pharmacies while trying to obtain prescribed medicines.

Several dispensing points in Murmansk are now extending their opening hours.

State Takeover Disrupts Distribution

The problems emerged during a transfer of medicine storage and distribution from a commercial contractor to a public organization.

Panychev said existing stocks had been transferred during the previous week. The remaining challenge was getting medicines from the new warehouse system to local dispensing points.

Chibis said the change was intended to reduce dependence on a private supplier that had increased prices. That is the regional government’s explanation for the reorganization and the disruption that followed.

The region still operates 27 dispensing points.

Volunteers linked to United Russia, the country’s ruling party, have also been brought into the delivery effort.

Chibis has ordered officials to review the entire process patients must follow to receive prescription medicines. He wants proposals for improvements within two weeks.

The order suggests the volunteer deliveries are being treated as an emergency measure rather than a replacement for the ordinary service.

Medical Center Prepares for Drone Emergencies

Further south, one of Russia’s major medical institutions is preparing for a different kind of disruption.

The Almazov National Medical Research Center in St. Petersburg is acquiring emergency equipment for a team intended to keep critical facilities operating during drone threats.

Tender documents include a generator, saw, hammer, ax, sledgehammer and grinder.

The equipment is designed for practical emergency work if buildings or infrastructure are damaged.

The procurement shows the medical center is preparing for such incidents. It does not establish that the equipment has already been delivered or that the emergency team is operational.

Water Cut Hits Northern Fleet City

Infrastructure problems were also reported elsewhere in northwest Russia.

In Severomorsk, headquarters of Russia’s Northern Fleet, excavation work exposed a damaged pipe on October 26 and interrupted hot water supplies.

More than 20 buildings were listed as affected, including homes, two schools, a kindergarten and a blood transfusion station.

The incident came as residents elsewhere in the region were already dealing with pressure on basic public services.

In neighboring Karelia, an electricity network fault cut power to the Klyuchevaya district of Petrozavodsk early on October 27.