Urals Residents Complain About Lack of Subsidized Diabetes Drug

Yekaterinburg resident Nadezhda complained to E1.RU about the absence of the drug Forxiga in subsidized pharmacies. It is prescribed to patients with diabetes, chronic heart failure, and chronic kidney disease. One package costs about 2,500 rubles (approx. $28 USD), and many pensioners cannot afford to buy this medication monthly.

Nadezhda said that her mother was issued a prescription for the medication on January 20. Since then, the woman has been to three pharmacies that dispense subsidized drugs and has still been unable to get Forxiga.

Residents of Sverdlovsk Region are also complaining to the authorities about the lack of this drug. Recently, on OTV, Sverdlovsk Region Health Minister Tatyana Savinova assured that the region«s drug supply is stocked for three to four months, including Forxiga.

According to the minister, January always sees more patients, and pharmacies are short-staffed, leading to long lines. Another issue is that patients are not assigned to a specific pharmacy; they can go to any that dispenses subsidized drugs. Because of this, medications cannot be prepared for each person in advance, and they can run out.

«The problem right now is not the availability of medications. We have a lot of drugs in our warehouses. After the New Year holidays, patients traditionally come and get prescriptions, and the number of patients in January is always higher. The first weeks of the year are traditionally stressful,» explained Tatyana Savinova.

Due to staff shortages in private pharmacies operating under agency agreements, long lines build up there. Most often, a single pharmacist works and after each request goes to the warehouse to look for drugs. To solve the queue problem, the minister ordered staff from «Farmatsiya» and medical college students to be sent to help these private pharmacies.

«Farmatsiya» is a state autonomous institution. It includes a network of pharmacies in Yekaterinburg and Sverdlovsk Region, a wholesale warehouse for medications and vaccines, and subsidized drugs.

Also, many «subsidized» pharmacies operate only part-time and on weekdays, which can also affect queues. E1.RU readers have complained to the editorial office about this.

The health minister stated that queues for medications have been recorded at four pharmacies in the region, three of which are in Yekaterinburg: No. 420 «Yekaterinburgpharm» at Panel«naya St., 13; pharmacy No. 277 at Repina St., 107; and No. 327 »Zdorovye« at Akademika Bardina St., 34.

Tatyana Savinova expressed hope that from January 30 onward, there would be no more queues at these pharmacies because help had been sent there. This is why Yekaterinburg resident Nadezhda chose the pharmacy on Akademika Bardina Street on January 30, but still encountered a queue of ten townspeople.

Nadezhda filmed her visit to the pharmacy. In the video, the pharmacist can be heard refusing to dispense drugs to several more customers, who ask in response how long they are supposed to wait.

«So, I»m leaving empty-handed, no one is giving out Forxiga, as it«s not in stock. What»s on the shelf is for federal benefits, as I was told. The answer is the same for everyone: the drug is ordered, deliveries to the pharmacy are on Monday and Thursday, but don«t come to pick it up before [next] Wednesday. And the question is, what guarantee is there that we will get the drug on Wednesday? Besides Forxiga, they also aren»t giving out Gliclazide, but that drug is at least cheaper and not so costly to buy,« the E1.RU reader said.

By law, if a drug is unavailable, the pharmacy must accept the prescription, put it on deferred service, and ensure the drug is dispensed within the specified time—within 10 working days, or 15 working days in case of a medical commission«s decision.

In case of refusal to dispense or violation of deadlines, one should contact the clinic administration, the territorial body of the Ministry of Health, or the prosecutor«s office.

Updated. The Ministry of Health told E1.RU that the pharmacy at Akademika Bardina St., 34 received Forxiga on Friday evening. The drug can be picked up on Monday.

Last December, patients already reported a shortage of the drug Forxiga for diabetics, but authorities denied it at the time.

A few days ago, we showed a huge queue that formed at the pharmacy on Repina St., 107, then Yekaterinburg residents showed another large queue at the «subsidized» pharmacy at Akademika Bardina St., 34.