Russia has begun laying off medical personnel on a massive scale due to regional budget shortfalls
In the first half of 2026, Russian regions faced a wave of layoffs in the public sector. According to official statistics, 4,300 employees in the health care and social services sectors were laid off over the course of six months due to staff reductions. Another 161,300 people resigned voluntarily.
In total, 185,300 employees left medical and social institutions during this period, while 165,900 were hired. Thus, the total number of people employed in the sector decreased by 19,300 over the course of six months.
A survey of doctors conducted by Medvestnik in August showed that 38% of healthcare workers had faced potential layoffs that were being discussed within their workgroups. Another 14.8% of doctors reported that management had already confirmed cuts of 10–15%.
In particular, a 15% reduction was planned in St. Petersburg hospitals. According to “Fontanka,” in June, Andriy Sarana, head of the city’s Health Care Committee, warned chief physicians about a possible reduction in healthcare spending. Later, his deputy, Yana Egorova, confirmed this necessity at a meeting with financial officials from budgetary institutions.
Russian regions, whose budgets fund the bulk of healthcare spending, are cutting healthcare expenditures after their combined budget deficit reached a historic high of 1.5 trillion rubles last year. Sberbank previously projected that this year’s regional budget deficit could rise to 2 trillion rubles.
Back in April, Anatoly Artamonov, chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Budget and Financial Markets, called on the regions to conduct an audit of expenditures and consider optimizing underutilized hospitals and maternity wards. There was also discussion of mothballing unfinished construction projects or transferring individual buildings within medical complexes to private investors.
According to first-quarter results, the consolidated budgets of the Russian Federation’s constituent entities allocated 6.4% less funding to clinics and hospitals than during the same period last year. Excluding Moscow, with an annual budget of nearly 5 trillion rubles, the reduction in healthcare spending in the regions amounted to 5.2% on a year-over-year basis.
This was reported by Russian propaganda media.
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