{"id":1342292,"date":"2026-01-09T11:23:36","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T09:23:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prm.ua\/pharmacy-between-hot-dogs-how-government-affordable-drugs-can-cost-you-your-health\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T07:56:43","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T05:56:43","slug":"pharmacy-between-hot-dogs-how-government-affordable-drugs-can-cost-you-your-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prm.ua\/en\/pharmacy-between-hot-dogs-how-government-affordable-drugs-can-cost-you-your-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Affordable Drugs, Unaffordable Risks: When Government Medicine Hits Like Fast Food"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source: Author’s Facebook<\/a> page<\/em><\/p>\n

Some things the government knows how to sell flawlessly\u2014not because they are any good, but because they come beautifully packaged.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here is a fresh \u201cvictory of social policy\u201d: under the decision of the National Security and Defense Council and a presidential decree, people are promised lower medicine prices and \u201cavailability everywhere.\u201d As a symbol of this new era, over-the-counter medicines are now being sold at gas stations \u2014 even through vending machines.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s when I became sharply wary. I know one very Ukrainian trick: when the state cannot provide a proper system, it absolves itself of responsibility and calls it a reform.<\/p>\n

In a normal country, this would be about safety and oversight. Here, it\u2019s \u201cself-medicate\u201d \u2014 now with a coffee on the go.<\/p>\n

Great manipulation: “We do it like in Europe.”<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The main argument of lobbyists for selling medicines at gas stations is the alleged European experience. We are told: look at Poland, Sweden, or Denmark \u2014 it works there.<\/p>\n

This is a half-truth that is worse than a lie.<\/p>\n

Yes, in some EU countries you can buy medicines at gas stations. But the devil is in the details \u2014 details our officials prefer to keep quiet. First, in Europe, only a limited range of products is permitted.\u00a0 For example, in Poland, this list contains around products: common painkillers, throat lozenges, and treatments for heartburn. Second, there are strict requirements for packaging (small packs for 1\u20132 days of use to avoid overdoses) and storage conditions.<\/p>\n

What does the Ukrainian Ministry of Health propose? Opening the floodgates to the entire non-prescription range \u2014 thousands of items, from complex anti-allergic drugs to medications affecting blood pressure or the gastrointestinal tract. No EU country allows such uncontrolled circulation of medicines without a pharmacist\u2019s supervision. This is not European integration \u2014 it is deregulation at the level of a third-world country.<\/p>\n\t\t