Ambulance service became a paid service in Kherson region

The state of healthcare in the occupied areas of the left-bank Kherson region is deteriorating, turning into a tool of direct extortion. The Russian occupation structures have actually refused to provide basic assistance, moving to openly extorting money from local residents.

This was reported by the Yellow Ribbon resistance movement.

In the temporarily occupied Genichesk, an ambulance call has actually turned into a paid service, which can only be used by those who are able to pay an unofficial "subscription fee. Local activists note that the dispatchers of the 103 service openly offer patients a monetary reward for speeding up the arrival of doctors. The size of the bribe usually ranges from 1,000 to 3,000 rubles and depends on the time of day and distance to the patient. If a person refuses to pay, they are cynically told that the waiting time for a doctor will be from 3 to 6 hours, and that the availability of a free car is not guaranteed at all.

This situation is a direct consequence of the administrative collapse of the occupation authorities. The health care system in the occupied territories is in a state of deep crisis due to an acute shortage of qualified personnel and regular salary arrears for medical staff. This forces the remaining employees to resort to extortion from local residents for their own survival.

Also, at the end of last year, the education system in the TOT of Kherson region faced an open financial failure.

Instead of any final payments, school and kindergarten staff received notices of layoffs, new staffing levels, and actual confirmation of the lack of funds in the sector. This is happening against the backdrop of public statements by the occupation administration about the growth of budget revenues and the stabilization of the region's economy.

Катерина Глушко