The state budget of Ukraine for 2021 allocates less than half of the funds necessary for the treatment of patients, including those suffering from severe chronic diseases.
The executive director of the Patient Foundation of Ukraine, Inna Ivanenko, stated this at a press conference in Kyiv, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“It is very scarce and two items on which the health and lives of millions of Ukrainians depend are completely underfunded. This is a program of medical guarantees and government procurement of medicines for seriously ill patients. We actively demanded an increase in medical expenses, we sent 22 appeals to various authorities that were involved in the formation of the budget for 2021, but, unfortunately, all our demands remained unsatisfied,” Ivanenko said.
She said that, in accordance with the law, the amount of funding for the medical guarantee program should be 5% of GDP, but only 2021% was allocated for it in the 2,7 budget. The budget also includes 123,5 billion hryvnia, while the need is 225 billion - the underfunding is about 45%.
“This means that each patient will pay extra out of his own pocket for those services for which the government could not find money in the budget,” the expert said.
According to her, the budget includes 9,5 billion hryvnia for medicines, while the need is 17,2 billion. Underfunding is also about 45%.
“This means that people who live with a serious illness such as oncology, multiple sclerosis, HIV, tuberculosis, hepatitis and so on will not have access to effective treatment. To treat such diseases, the government purchases very basic medicines. This money is not in the budget. Ukrainians will again be deprived of highly effective treatment. The state buys medicines that are considered obsolete throughout the civilized world.
And in general, patients who have never received money from the state are left behind. These are adults with diseases such as epilepsy, Crohn's disease, general muscular atrophy, and so on. They must buy these medicines with their own money. These are unaffordable amounts, which means the disability of such patients,” Ivanenko concluded.