Man with asthma denied subsidized medicine in Volgograd
In Volgograd, 39-year-old Daniil, who suffers from bronchial asthma, cannot obtain the free medication he is entitled to. After his health worsened, he received a prescription at the hospital, but the pharmacy refused to provide him with the drug.
«I am registered at the GUZ »Clinical Hospital No. 11« with a diagnosis of bronchial asthma. Bronchial asthma is included in the list of diseases for which medication for treatment is dispensed free of charge with a doctor»s prescription during outpatient care. I used to receive the drug «Respiforb» for free,« the man says.
«On January 26, I was issued another prescription at the hospital to obtain the drug. However, when I went to the pharmacy with this prescription, they did not give it to me. Allegedly, it is out of stock due to a lack of necessary funding for its purchase. They told me to contact the health committee. Moreover, when asked when the drug would be available, they told me: »Maybe two weeks, maybe a month, or maybe six months.« And this drug is available for purchase, meaning they are pushing me to buy it, which costs about 1,300 rubles (approximately $14 at current rates) for 120 capsules. What»s most upsetting is that I haven«t been particularly concerned about this drug, applying every three years. But due to the cold and frost, my condition has worsened, and I decided to finally exercise my right.»
Daniil has already filed complaints with the prosecutor«s office, the Investigative Committee of the Volgograd region, and Roszdravnadzor (the Federal Service for Surveillance in Healthcare). He has not yet received responses to his appeals.
Previously, a similar situation occurred with a 51-year-old man who has aortic dissection and ischemic heart disease. He was also denied subsidized medicine and was forced to buy the drug with his own money since October last year. After media coverage, the patient was invited to the hospital to receive a prescription.
