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Weak Ruble Hits Russian Hospitals

Maxim Stulov / Vedomosti

Russian hospitals are being hit by the economic crisis as the weak ruble pushes up the cost of medical equipment, the TASS news agency reported.

?€?Today?€™s Russian medicine is 80 percent dependent on imports,?€? said Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, at a session aimed to discuss the new opportunities for the Russian healthcare industry.

?€?[Before the crisis], we used to have enough money allocated to purchase all the necessary equipment, but the exchange rate was different. Now, everything became twice as expensive,?€? Rogozin said, TASS reported.

Western currencies have risen significantly against the ruble amid falling oil prices and anti-Russia sanctions. In March 2016, the ruble had devalued more than 50 percent against the dollar since July 2014.

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