Anatoly Artamonov, head of the Russian Federation Council’s budget committee, has proposed closing underused hospital departments and directing patients to larger medical centers, citing a shortage of public funds. Meanwhile, residents of the Yaroslavl region described problems accessing doctors, and authorities in Krasnoyarsk Krai confirmed plans to close two maternity hospitals.
In the Yaroslavl region village of Grigoryevskoye, a resident identified as Vera said one paramedic serves both adults and children and there is no pediatrician. She said she has to use a private clinic in Yaroslavl for her grandson’s medical consultations.
Vera also said her mother collapsed at a clinic in Lesnye Polyany and died before an ambulance arrived, after a wait of about 50 minutes, according to her account. She alleged that clinic staff had not provided her mother with the care she needed.
Another Yaroslavl region resident, Marina, said that after her father was diagnosed with stage-four lung cancer, traveling to obtain prescribed pain medication and completing the necessary paperwork took almost an entire day. She said the family had to pay for some consultations.
According to the journalists’ reporting, the Krasnoyarsk Krai Health Ministry confirmed plans to close maternity hospitals Nos. 4 and 6 by mid-January 2027. It cited falling birth numbers and the condition of Hospital No. 6’s building and promised to offer staff other jobs. Residents and hospital employees fear that the changes will make obstetric care harder to reach.