Regions Face Medication Shortages

Interruptions in medicine supplies are affecting beneficiaries across several Russian regions, the independent publication Okno (The Window) reported, citing nonprofit employees and patients. Residents have reported difficulty obtaining insulin, blood-sugar-lowering tablets, and essential medical supplies, and there has been a complete halt in dispensing parenteral nutrition for children suffering from short bowel syndrome.

In Saratov Oblast, residents complain about unreliable access to insulin, consumables for insulin pumps, and test strips used in glucometers, devices that measure blood sugar levels.

"Insulin isn't always available. Recently, they refused to issue it. Fortunately, I had stocked up," said Dmitry, a resident of Saratov. He added that although regional pharmacies have medications, obtaining them through government-funded programs is nearly impossible.

Notably, a monthly supply of insulin in local pharmacies ranges from R5,000 ($59) for Russian-made analogs to R30,000 (approximately $360), close to the average monthly salary in the region. Patients suspect authorities have started cutting back on medications covered by subsidized prescriptions. On February 11, Regional Health Minister Vladimir Dudakov told the regional legislature there were reserves through March 2025, noting a R3 billion (nearly $360 million) shortfall in the medication budget through the end of 2025.

Corruption may also contribute to the shortages. Oleg Gridnev, head of social law supervision at the regional prosecutor's office, said at a meeting on medication supplies that officials had identified government purchases at inflated prices, likely to finance kickbacks.

Similar problems are reported in the Krasnoyarsk Kray and Ulyanovsk Oblast, where diabetics, including children, face medication shortages.

"Every year, it's the same headache—delays, incorrect purchases, unsigned contracts, or suppliers letting us down. But this year they've outdone themselves," Iya, a local resident, told journalists. "In 2025, we're completely left without supplies for ourselves and our sick children. There are no glucose test strips or supplies for insulin pumps."

Parents say doctors conscientiously write prescriptions, but pharmacies delay dispensing medications.

"Diabetics in Russia now have special exchange groups and chats. We constantly use online flea markets, exchanging what we have — insulin, test strips, or cannulas," Iya said.

According to another parent, even adult diabetics in the region have stopped receiving subsidized insulin and related consumables.

"The scale of this issue in just our region is alarming. We have 1,200 patients in a single diabetes chat, and everyone lacks something," said Olga.

The situation is even grimmer for patients with short bowel syndrome (a condition where the small intestine is significantly shorter or damaged, resulting in impaired absorption of nutrients and water). Maria Balashova from the nonprofit organization Veter Nadezhd (Wind of Hopes) said medication interruptions for this condition now affect nearly every region in Russia.

"The country faces increasing difficulties in providing people with subsidized medications. We manage care for 620 sick children and 200 adults, and every Russian region experiences shortages of critical and expensive drugs for treating rare, serious conditions," Balashova said. "Regional health officials routinely refuse to dispense medications funded legally from the budget."

Patients particularly struggle to obtain parenteral nutrition, essential for children with short bowel syndrome to avoid fatal complications. Families have been supporting each other through online exchanges and informal markets, lending vital medicines with hopes of repayment later.

Drug shortages have become common in the aftermath of the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of  Ukraine. In the spring of 2024, Kalimeit, Russia's only registered potassium sorbent for dialysis patients, disappeared from pharmacies in 58 regions. Since the summer of 2023, parents of children with cystic fibrosis have complained about shortages of hemostatic drugs, with patients forcibly transitioned in 2025 to an untested Russian-made alternative. Additionally, 78.5 percent of doctors surveyed by the Doctors of the Russian Federation community reported drug shortages in 2024.

Okno noted that Russian authorities cut federal spending on imported medications by 65 billion rubles ($773 million) in 2023, redirecting these funds potentially toward military needs, according to analysts from Headway Company and DSM Group.