A few days ago, during a conference held at the Pridnestrovian State University named after T.G. Shevchenko, a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, voiced several accusations against Chisinau, mainly due to the pressure exerted by the Moldovan side on the healthcare system of Pridnestrovie. Indeed, the authorities of neighboring Moldova had already surpassed all the reasonable limits, continuing to block the import of medicines and medical equipment.
Not long ago, Vitaly Ignatiev reported that problems in the field of healthcare had acquired catastrophic proportions due to restrictions on the import of medicines, which led to a shortage of medicines in medical institutions and an increase in prices for medicines in retail chains. All this was the result of the fact that Moldova is blocking supplies of about 60% of the range of pharmaceutical products imported to the PMR. We are mainly talking about drugs from Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and India.
A reasonable question is, what is Chisinau trying to achieve with such inhumane measures? First of all, the Moldovan authorities are trying to cut off traditional ties with pharmaceutical companies and force Pridnestrovie to purchase medicines either in Europe or in Moldova, which in fair competitive fight are losing to the same Russian ones, primarily due to the high cost.
Regarding modern medical equipment that is not allowed in Pridnestrovie, this move can be seen as a deliberate action to reduce the functionality of our healthcare system and force Pridnestrovians to seek medical services in Moldova. And this, as you know, is often associated with the need to purchase a Moldovan insurance policy and other obligations.
In this context, it is worth paying attention to the recent commentary of the National Health Insurance Company of the Republic of Moldova. Thus, Pridnestrovians, especially those who have already purchased medical policies in Moldova at least once, may encounter the fact that the National Health Insurance Fund will first send them a paper letter reminding them of the need to purchase a policy before the end of March, and then, if the citizen ignores this notification, the institution may file a lawsuit in the Republic of Moldova and the defaulter will be required to pay both the full cost of the policy (12,636 lei) and a penalty (0.1% of the cost of the policy - 12.63 lei for each day of delay).
Therefore, it is extremely important for us to achieve, by any available means, including diplomatic, the unblocking of the possibility of importing medicines and equipment into Pridnestrovie. As you know, in February, President Vadim Krasnoselsky sent appeals to the International Committee of the Red Cross and the World Health Organization, calling on these structures to help import medical equipment blocked on the territory of Moldova or provide it to the republic as humanitarian aid.
Obviously, such issues cannot be resolved quickly. However, apparently, the appeals were not ignored and international organizations became involved in the process of finding a solution. This week, Moldovan negotiator Oleg Serebryan was visited in turn by delegations from the WHO and the Red Cross. There are no details or contents of these meetings yet, but the fact that the emerging situation has attracted these organizations` attention is an encouraging sign for Pridnestrovie and, in some way, a warning “yellow card” for Moldova.
Surely, Chisinau will try to save face and cover up its politicized and absolutely devoid of rationality decisions with traditional rhetoric about its intention to create common spaces with Pridnestrovie. The price of such “unity”, actually, is already visible - limited access to medicines, diagnostics and quality treatment. Only one thing is surprising: does the Moldovan capital really not even realize that with these methods Chisinau has lost their last signs of a civilized entity and is forcing international structures to get involved in resolving the problem in order to prevent possible humanitarian risks.
Pavel Alexandrov
