- Статьи
- Society
- I'll give you a tooth: almost every second dentist in the Russian Federation works illegally
I'll give you a tooth: almost every second dentist in the Russian Federation works illegally
About half of dental clinics in Russia operate illegally or in violation of the law: they do not have licenses or registration in state systems for monitoring the turnover of goods and medicines. Among the cities and regions with the largest number of such practices are St. Petersburg, Moscow, Sverdlovsk and Chelyabinsk regions, Tatarstan. Public activists are asking First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov to allow unscheduled inspections of private dentists and to stop their activities. The industry recognizes the existing problem, attributing it to insufficient government funding, which forces patients to choose clinics based on the available budget.
Why are so many dental clinics operating illegally
About 45% of dental clinics in the Russian Federation operate with disabilities: They do not have licenses or registration in the Federal State Information System for Monitoring the Movement of Medicines and in the State Information System for Monitoring the Turnover of Goods. This is stated in a study by the Public Consumer Initiative (OPI) based on data from the Federal Tax Service, Roszdravnadzor and the drug labeling system. Izvestia has reviewed the document. It was sent to the head of the State Commission for Combating Illicit Trafficking in Industrial Products, First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, with a request to take measures to combat illegal clinics.
In their appeal, the social activists note that "the volume of the dentistry market in 2025 has already exceeded 800 billion rubles and continues to grow dynamically, but a significant part of this turnover is in the gray zone, which creates direct threats to the life and health of citizens, as well as harms the country's budget system and bona fide business."
Of particular concern is the critical disparity of violations among sole proprietors and legal entities revealed during the study. For the former, this figure reaches 56%, for the latter — 11.5%. At the same time, according to expert estimates, the market share of sole proprietors in dentistry is estimated at more than 70% of the total number of private practices, the document says. That is, the average percentage of violations in the industry as a whole (LLC + sole proprietor) is about 45%, Oleg Pavlov, the head of the OPI, told Izvestia.
In fact, this means that every second dentist in Russia operates illegally or in violation of the law. According to the study, the top 10 subjects with the highest number of such violations included St. Petersburg (80%), Moscow (78.5%), Sverdlovsk (72%) and Chelyabinsk (67.2%) regions, Tatarstan (65.4%), Omsk (62.2%), Voronezh (61.4%) Nizhny Novgorod (59%), Novosibirsk (59%) and Samara (54.4%) regions.
Public activists suggest that the first deputy Prime Minister allow unscheduled inspections of such medical activities, develop amendments to the Administrative Code that equalize fines for individual entrepreneurs and legal entities for violations of the rules of turnover of medicines and medical products, and introduce a mechanism for "auto fines" using a labeling system. In addition, it is proposed to ban the advertising of such clinics on online maps and digital platforms.
Sole proprietors' liability for administrative violations, including in the field of labeling (art. 15.12 of the Administrative Code) is 10-30 times lower than for legal entities — 5-10 thousand rubles against 300-500 thousand. A similar gap in fines for operating without a license (Part 2 of Article 14.1 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation): for officials (including sole proprietors) — from 4 thousand to 5 thousand rubles, for legal entities — from 40 thousand to 50 thousand.
"The lack of a license and registration in these state systems most likely indicates that the clinic does not have the necessary facilities, equipment and qualified personnel, and also uses medicines and medical devices of unknown origin, without ensuring patient safety," Oleg Pavlov explained to Izvestia.
According to him, when purchasing according to gray schemes, the risks of using drugs imported with a violation of the temperature regime significantly increase, which makes them ineffective or dangerous for patients, including the threat of anaphylactic shock.
Izvestia sent requests to the government's press service, Denis Manturov's office and Roszdravnadzor with a request to comment on the appeal of public figures.
Why is this situation in the industry
The Dental Association of Russia recognizes the problem. They noted that there is no state policy in this field in our country.
— In each of the 89 regions, dentists work according to their own rules. Therefore, of course, order needs to be restored," Valery Leontiev, vice president of the association, told Izvestia.
According to him, the population today often cannot pay for dental services on their own, although, according to experts, about 98% of Russians need them.
— Therefore, there should be a good government policy to reduce the cost of services. The amount allocated by the state today cannot cure a patient," he said. — If a person goes to a doctor for dental treatment without a license, he puts himself at risk of receiving substandard services, but his choice depends on his ability to pay.
Evgeny Nifantiev, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Health Protection, stressed that people who choose unlicensed clinics with unmarked medicines are obviously putting themselves in great danger.
— This is a licensed type of activity. Upon obtaining a license, the supervisory authority checks not only the premises and equipment of the medical organization, but also the qualifications of the staff. Contacting clinics operating illegally is absolutely irresponsible in relation to one's health," the expert emphasized.
According to him, if we talk about medicines, it is very important for the patient to have confidence that they are safe and effective. Therefore, they must necessarily be registered, properly stored and acquired in an understandable way from a licensed organization, Evgeny Nifantiev emphasized.
— Today, 72.8 thousand organizations in the Drug Movement Monitoring System (MDLP) have an active medical license. The dentistry category is not singled out separately in the system — we see the total number of registered clinics in all areas," the press service of the Center for Advanced Technologies (CRPT) told Izvestia.
At the same time, they noted that if a dental office operates without a license, it is not automatically registered in the MDLP system. Such cases are a gross violation of the law, and they must be referred to the prosecutor's office for action, the organization stressed.
They also noted that the key problem lies not in the turnover of medicines in dental organizations, which are strictly (and with regard to painkillers — extremely strictly) controlled and monitored through a labeling system, but in the turnover of medical products (implants, composite materials, burs, etc.), which are not subject to mandatory labeling in the Honest Sign system." and they can be imported into the country without proper registration and control (for example, in hand luggage). Therefore, it is often a counterfeit, the press service explained.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
