Ukrainian healthcare workers are dissatisfied with the salaries provided for in the 2027 budget proposal
The draft state budget for 2027 provides for the possibility of raising base salaries for healthcare workers; however, these plans have sparked discontent among workers in the sector.
Specifically, the proposal calls for a base salary of up to 30,000 hryvnias for doctors and up to 20,000 hryvnias for nurses and nursing assistants. Users left over 200 comments under the Verkhovna Rada’s post about the planned changes.
Healthcare workers, in particular, point out the lack of specifics regarding the pay for junior medical staff. They also question the phrasing “up to” 20,000–30,000 hryvnias, asking exactly who will receive these amounts and how much employees will actually take home after taxes.
Healthcare professionals are asking about junior staff
One of the most common questions in the comments concerns employees who were not specifically mentioned in the announcement about the pay raises.
“Don’t you even mention junior medical staff?” asked one user. She also described caring for bedridden patients, assisting with examinations, feeding, and cleaning, and noted that, according to her, she earns about 6,700 hryvnias for such work.
Other commenters also drew attention to orderlies and junior nurses.
“What about the orderlies? Do junior nurses get the short end of the stick?” reads one of the comments.
Who Will Get 20,000–30,000
Another topic actively discussed in the comments was the specific phrasing “up to 20,000 UAH” for nurses and “up to 30,000 UAH” for doctors.
“Up to 30,000 and 30,000—as they say in Odesa, that’s a world of difference. If a doctor doesn’t take home 50,000 and a nurse doesn’t take home 30,000, an exodus of medical professionals from public institutions to the private sector is inevitable,” reads one of the comments.
At the same time, some medical professionals described the opposite experience in their comments. One user wrote that at her workplace, employees were warned about the possible elimination of bonuses, having to pay for their own expenses, and a subsequent switch to the minimum wage. Another commenter replied that they had also been informed about possible layoffs or a switch to the minimum wage.
Users also compared the proposed salaries for medical professionals with the incomes of other categories of workers. “Doctors—that is, those who study hard and diligently for eight years—are set to earn 30,000, while civil servants will earn 60,000?” reads one of the comments.
At the same time, there were also positive reactions among the more than 200 comments. “Well, at least it’s something,” wrote one user.
What the draft budget provides for
Funding for the Medical Guarantees Program in 2027 is planned to increase to 225 billion hryvnias—that’s 33.5 billion hryvnias more than this year. According to the Verkhovna Rada, these additional funds should make it possible to raise the base salary level for healthcare workers.
The draft budget mentions the possibility of raising the base salary to 30,000 UAH for doctors and to 20,000 UAH for nurses and nursing assistants. At the same time, parliament emphasizes that these figures are preliminary.
Amendments may be made during the review of the draft budget, particularly regarding increased funding and the amount of payments. Therefore, the final parameters for healthcare workers’ pay in 2027 will depend on the further review and adoption of the state budget.
This was reported with reference to a post by the Verkhovna Rada on Facebook.
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