Solutions from Ukraine: Ministry of Health to expand mobile pharmacy points project across all regions

Minister of Health Viktor Liashko announced that the Ministry of Health intends to extend the project of mobile pharmacy points to all regions.

He told about this on the air of the national telethon "Edyni Novyny."

"At a minimum, they should be operational in each region. Some regions have launched [mobile pharmacy points – ed.]; in the Cherkasy region, another pharmacy chain is undergoing licensing, and there will be another mobile pharmacy point. We also expect such pharmacy points in the Rivne region shortly," Liashko said.

In addition, as the minister added, preparations are underway for the launch of a mobile pharmacy in the Sumy region; specialists who helped implement such a project in the Kharkiv region are involved in this project.

Also, according to Liashko, a route for a mobile pharmacy point in the Chernihiv region is currently being developed and will be presented to pharmacy chains.

As the minister noted, the maintenance of mobile pharmacy points and the wages of employees are the responsibility of the pharmacy chains that have joined the project. In the Cherkasy region, a mobile pharmacy point was created by Communal Enterprise "Pharmacy," several more points will be made with donors' funds within the framework of individual projects of international technical assistance.

"However, the state pays for drugs dispensed by electronic prescriptions under the "Affordable Medicines" program through contracts with the National Health Service," Liashko said.

According to him, the next stage of ensuring the availability of medicines will be a joint project of the Ministry of Health with JSC "Ukrposhta," which received licenses from the State Medical Service for wholesale trade and dispensing medicines as a postal operator.

According to Liashko, one of our projects with Ukrposhta is purchasing medications via the website or phone and having them delivered to the nearest branch or directly to the customer's home.

For reference:

As reported, in January 2024, the first mobile pharmacy started operating in the Kharkiv region, the route of which covers 80 settlements.

In February, a mobile pharmacy was launched in the Cherkasy region, which covers 36 settlements. Mobile pharmacies dispense both over-the-counter and prescription drugs, including under the "Affordable Medicines" e-prescription program.