The authorities of St. Petersburg will ask Murashko to take control of prices for PCR tests

The initiative was prepared by deputies from United RUSSIA. The appeal says that the price of PCR tests varies from 646 to 3 thousand rubles. The Ministry of HEALTH says

The Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg approved an appeal to the Minister of Health of Russia Mikhail Murashko with a request to take personal control over the solution to the problem of retail prices for PCR tests and medicines for the treatment of covid-19 , Fontanka writes. The corresponding resolution on the appeal was prepared in early February on the initiative of the deputies of the United Russia faction.

“According to the monitoring of prices for PCR tests, in St. Petersburg , in pharmacies, the indicated prices range from 646 rubles. up to 3 thousand rubles When passing the test in a specialized medical organization, prices also vary from 1.2 thousand rubles. and higher. In some cases, the price increases for the speed of providing the result of a study on COVID-19, the so-called express test, which increases the cost of the analysis by at least 50%. <…>. For most citizens, the difference in price is 2,354 rubles. is significant,” the text of the appeal reads.

it also notes that this problem is relevant not only for St. Petersburg, but also for other regions of Russia. The document states that the “dispersion in prices” is associated with the lack of state legal regulation in the field of pricing for PCR tests or services of specialized medical organizations conducting research on CORONAVIRUS, which leads to a decrease in the role of state control in this area. “In connection with the foregoing, we ask you, dear Mikhail Albertovich, to take personal control over the solution to the problem of the retail cost of PCR tests, medicines for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19, as well as pricing for the services of specialized medical organizations,” the deputies turned to Murashko.

The Ministry of Health told RBC that Murashko had repeatedly raised the problem of overestimating the cost of PCR testing, and now, on behalf of Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the FAS is dealing with the problem, and the Prosecutor General's Office has also joined. “According to our data, in most cases, overpricing is typical for private rather than state medical organizations,” the Ministry of Health added.

The Prosecutor General instructed to check the validity of the cost of PCR tests Society

On January 27, the All-Russian Popular Front called on the FAS to check the Invitro, Gemotest and Citylab laboratories because of the high prices for PCR testing. Representatives of the organization visited 477 laboratories in 85 regions of Russia. It turned out that in 13 subjects testing costs more than 2 thousand rubles, and in Moscow, St. Petersburg, the Moscow region and several other regions - more than 2.5 thousand rubles.

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After that, the Kremlin promised to pay attention to information about the increase in prices for tests in some regions. “But for sure the operational headquarters is monitoring this situation,” added Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the president.

On February 3, Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov instructed the prosecutors of the subjects to check the validity of the cost of PCR tests for coronavirus in the laboratories of medical institutions, as well as the prices for tests in pharmacies.

How the number of new cases of Covid-19 infection in Russia is changing Source: federal and regional headquarters for combating coronavirus Data for Russia i