Journalists from the publication "Favorite City. Odessa" have recently been covering issues related to inflated drug prices in pharmacy chains, as well as the overcrowding of pharmacies in Odessa regional hospitals.
On August 12, 2016, journalists visited the Odessa Regional Clinical Hospital and the Odessa Regional Children's Clinical Hospital. At the same time, approximately 10 different pharmacies from various companies were observed in the hospital buildings, as well as several pharmacies without any identifying documents. https://verhovenstvo.com/view/11133.
According to customers, prices at pharmacies vary, with some being more expensive and others being cheaper. Residents undergoing long-term inpatient treatment generally recommended purchasing medications on a specific floor of the hospital, but also clarified that it's better to buy medications at pharmacies outside the hospital grounds, as they tend to be cheaper.
On August 30, 2016, journalists from the publication "Favorite City. Odessa" decided to check for themselves how different prices were at the hospital pharmacies and how much they differed from prices at pharmacies outside the hospitals.
To analyze prices, journalists asked residents to show receipts for medications they had recently purchased at pharmacies, then compared them with prices for the same medications at pharmacies of the same brand outside of hospitals. As a result, outside of hospitals, regular saline was 0,85-1,5 hryvnias cheaper, inexpensive analgesics like Paracetamol or Ibuprofen were 1-1,5 hryvnias cheaper, antibiotics like Cefix or Sumamed were 10-15 hryvnias cheaper, and the price difference for expensive medications needed to treat more serious illnesses, according to some patients, starts at 50 hryvnias.
At first glance, the difference in cost for some medications may not seem that significant, but if you consider the volume of medications needed by someone undergoing inpatient treatment, the cost can be quite substantial, even when compared to the relatively inexpensive medications mentioned above.
Thus, both adults and children undergoing inpatient treatment are forced to purchase medications at hospitals at a significant premium. Typically, the attending physician compiles a list of all "essential" medications and refers their patients to the hospital pharmacy. This is not surprising, as part of the money from the "additional" markup on medications at these pharmacies goes to the physician, hospital management, and their government handlers.
Journalists from the publication "Favorite City. Odessa" will continue to cover the healthcare situation in the Odessa region.
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