Life of Ukrainian patients is in the hands of the World Bank
The World Bank (WB) may approve the decision, according to which the cost of medicines in Ukraine will be reduced by one third (?) and, accordingly, this will save the lives of millions of patients with HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and other serious diseases.
Activists of the representative office of Anti-AIDS Foundation – USA in Ukraine – AHF (AIDS Healthcare Foundation), SI "Ukrainian Center for Socially Dangerous Disease Control of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine" and All-Ukrainian Network of PLHIV called on the WB to remove Ukraine from the list of "middle-income" countries.
Participants of the press conference that was held in the news agency "Interfax-Ukraine" assured that such classification of Ukrainians' prosperity is what affects the level of pricing for imported medicines and the amount of financial assistance from international donor countries.
"Lives of people with HIV and tuberculosis depend on the money in the budget and procurements of medicines, on local officials and deputies, on physicians and pharmacists. Treatment is the main and vital component in the fight against epidemics, and the World Bank is one of the major players," noted Serhiy Fedorov, head of the representative office of Anti-AIDS Foundation – USA in Ukraine, AHF. "Today, according to the World Bank, Ukraine is in the group of the "middle-income" countries, at the level of some European countries. But all of us understand that real income of the population does not correspond to the official level of gross national income. Therefore, we demand that the World Bank revise the outdated classification".
Almost 30 years ago, for analytical purposes the World Bank introduced the classification of countries by groups on the basis of gross national income. However, it is not perfect, since it does not take into account the real living standards in countries. This classification is not intended for approving decisions about the availability of funding and formation of pricing policy for medicines in the country. But in practice, on the basis of this classification, importers of medicines form prices at which they supply their pills to countries, and international donors determine the level of assistance. If Ukraine falls into the category of the "middle-income" countries, this will mean that we will be paying for medicines at the same prises as some Europeans, Brazilians and Chinese, and also, that we need less international assistance, since there are the "poor", who need this help more. That is why there is a risk that the UN Global Fund, which finances treatment programs for Ukrainians, can reduce the provision of financial assistance, as a result of which Ukrainian patients will not get treatment they require, and HIV and tuberculosis epidemics will only grow," participants of the press conference believe.
"Classification of the World Bank dictates prices for medicines for Ukrainians who supposedly live in a middle-income country. But can we afford to buy medicines at the same prices as the Europeans? Let us be honest – no! It is crucial for all of us (and all the more for patients with HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis!) to get this classification revised," emphasizes Dmytro Sherembey, Chairman of the Coordination Council of the All-Ukrainian Network of PLHIV.
Participants of the press conference presented the World Bank with a calculator as a symbol of the need to recalculate the real income of Ukrainians, and promised to walk with international economists down the streets, for them to see prices at pharmacies, shops and compare them with the real income of the population.