We Paid, You Pay Too: Sverdlovsk Woman Misses Free MRI

Resident of Verkhnyaya Salda Olga could not get a knee examination under mandatory health insurance: there is no MRI machine in her hometown, and in Nizhny Tagil, where her doctor referred her, the machine is broken. The woman had to turn to a private clinic, and now she is determined to get her money back for the MRI procedure she underwent.

It might seem like a small case—but it is one of thousands of stories where patients fail to receive examinations they are entitled to for free. How did it happen that within a radius of 50 kilometers, the Sverdlovsk woman could not get the necessary help?

Olga went to the city hospital in Verkhnyaya Salda on 19 January; her knee was inflamed—the joint had swollen, and she could not move her leg. Doctors diagnosed synovitis, performed a puncture, and prescribed treatment.

Synovitis is an inflammation of the inner lining of the joint, accompanied by excessive formation and accumulation of fluid in its cavity. It manifests as swelling, pain, limited mobility, and local temperature increase. It usually affects large joints (knee, hip). Requires comprehensive treatment.

After taking pills and injections, Olga felt slightly better, but during a follow-up examination on 23 January, the surgeon discovered a more serious problem: based on symptoms, there was a question of ligament or meniscus damage. To clarify the diagnosis, an MRI was needed. Since there is no MRI machine in the city itself, the doctor issued a referral to Demidov Hospital in Nizhny Tagil, which is 50 kilometers from Verkhnyaya Salda.

«I called them. They said the machine is not working, it»s unknown when it will be working, and that«s it. Thus, a huge number of people are left without help, specifically without MRI under mandatory health insurance—Nizhny Tagil, Verkhnyaya and Nizhnyaya Salda, and many villages are affected. The cost of the examination in my case is 7000 rubles (about $77 at current rates), I currently have no steady income, and I have no extra money. This is one of the most expensive examinations… And by law, the state should provide the examination for free, I have a referral,» the woman said indignantly.

The doctor advised Olga not to wait around and to go for a paid examination. At Demidov Hospital, according to the patient, they did not offer any solution to the situation. Meanwhile, her knee began to swell again, and waiting further was risky. The woman decided on a paid examination at a center in Nizhny Tagil, so now she intends to seek compensation through the insurance company.

«The budget did allocate expenses for MRI scans for Salda patients… The insurance company said to write an application, and they will consider it. But at the Verkhnyaya Salda hospital itself, they say they could go bankrupt if everyone writes applications for payment of the service. When I was getting documents from the surgeon, people in line reproached me… saying: »We paid, so you should pay too…« If there were more concerned people defending their rights, which the state should ensure are fulfilled, the situation could be different,» Olga shared.

The chief physician of Demidov Hospital, Sergey Ovsyannikov, confirmed to E1.RU that the MRI machine, which had been working since 2012, has not been operational for more than three months.

«Since 13 October 2025, the machine has been faulty, requiring extensive repair. Currently, an auction for repair has been posted, the cost is 18 million 200 thousand rubles (about $200,200 at current rates). Alternative routing of patients for MRI examinations is carried out at the Sverdlovsk Regional Oncology Dispensary, branch No. 1 in Nizhny Tagil,» the hospital head responded.

For a long time, the MRI machine at Demidov Hospital was the only one in Nizhny Tagil. In December 2024, local media wrote that the equipment was faulty. At that time, the deputy minister of health of the region, Andrey Shastin, said that the Ministry of Health had allocated just over 15 million rubles for the repair of the broken machine. The official promised that the MRI scanner would be operational by February 2025.

And very recently, on 13 January 2026, the Sverdlovsk Ministry of Health reported that in Nizhny Tagil, the second in Russia and first in Sverdlovsk Oblast outpatient radiation diagnostics center was opened, which has three CT scanners and one MRI machine. It is unknown whether this center accepts patients, but Olga was not offered to undergo an examination there.

Recently, a woman from Yekaterinburg complained that doctors did not notice a displaced fracture in her daughter and prescribed her a gel for bruises.

And at this link — a story about how residents of a Sverdlovsk city are protesting due to the closure of a medical station.