The healthcare infrastructure throughout the country is fairly limited in the services that it can offer and typically is only able to provide emergency stabilizing care, except major cities ( Moscow, St Petersburg, and Vladivostok ).
During the communist era Russia had a formidable public healthcare system that was able to deliver low cost (essentially free) healthcare services to the majority of the Russian population. That system, which was introduced by Joseph Stalin, started to fall apart in the 1980's with the reforms that were being seen in the Russian economy and now the healthcare system is in a dangerous state of decay. One of the major concerns that is the current demographic crisis that Russia is undergoing; men are expected to live at least 10 years less than females, this has deprived the Russian state of a serious proportion of its work force and has contributed to overcrowding in many state hospitals.
The most serious situation facing the Russian healthcare system, however, is the fact that the country has an aging population. Over 12% of the total Russian population is over 65 years old, and because of this trend for a higher percentage of older citizens the nation's healthcare services are becoming clogged. Older people require more healthcare, this is especially true in a country that experiences severe weather fluctuations and where cases of cold and heat related diseases become more prevalent. In addition to this the older generation is tying up government funds in the form of social security and this in turn is depriving the healthcare system of the money that it needs to continue functioning adequately.
The major problems in the healthcare system in Russia can be explained in four points that are all related to the dual problems of an aging population and high death rates. The first issue that the healthcare system faces is inadequate staffing. In Russia there are only 418 doctors per 100,000 people, however there are approximately 1.6 million hospital beds (approximately 1 bed for every 90 people), and this has lead the medical professionals unable to help everybody. The second reason for the inadequacies in the healthcare system is the fact that hospitals are poorly equipped to provide treatment, which in itself is related to the 3 rd reason for poor healthcare; under funding. As mentioned previously the aging population is tying up much of the funds that are being directed at social services, including healthcare. This has left medical facilities unable to buy equipment or pay their medical staff adequate wages.
The fourth and final reason that the Russian public healthcare system has entered a state of decay is the inability of many Russians to afford the healthcare services that they receive. Healthcare prices in Russia have risen dramatically to meet the ever growing demands of the nation in terms of quality medical treatment, and to cover basic costs that are not subsidized by the government and this has meant that the best treatment is beyond most ordinary Russian's financial capabilities.
People who relocate to Russia often find the healthcare system in the country extremely confusing and complicated. There is good news however, since 2000 there has been a push for the establishment of a competent, comprehensive, private healthcare system in Russia, and this is just starting to bear fruits. The private healthcare system in Russia is able to provide extremely high quality service and treatment options, however these services are much more expensive than at institutions that are a part of, or were a part of, the public healthcare infrastructure. Due to this high cost for treatments the Russian health insurance industry is starting to become a major force in the nation's market and as many people want access to these higher quality services are unable to pay for treatment out of pocket health insurance is being seen as a vital necessity in Russia. This is also true for many expatriates in the country who are not willing to receive treatment at one of the nations many public hospitals, and almost all foreign nationals in Russia are discovering that the only way to truly protect themselves and their loved ones is with a quality health insurance plan.
We can provide people in Russia, and Russian expatriates located around the world, with comprehensive, locally compliant international health insurance plans. The policies that we provide are guaranteed renewable for life and are globally portable. This means that should you relocate to a different country, even if you have developed a serious medical condition, your plan will travel with you and continue to provide you with the coverage that you deserve. For more information about the quality Russia health insurance plans that we can offer, please contact one of our expert advisors today.
