Medical care is becoming a larger private expense in Russia just as the state directs far more federal money towards defence than health. Average spending on paid medical services rose from 8,300 roubles per person at the start of 2022 to more than 14,000 roubles by the end of 2026, according to calculations based on data from a national ratings agency.
That represents an increase of at least 68 per cent in four years. The sharpest rises have been recorded in dentistry, first consultations with specialist doctors, inpatient treatment, and laboratory and functional diagnostics.
The figures, reported by Russian media on 23 October 2026, do not establish that every increase in a medical bill is directly caused by government spending choices. They do show a growing strain on households: consultations and tests are becoming more expensive while medical costs are rising faster than the incomes of many patients.
Izvestia reported on the rise in spending, while also covered the development.
The cost begins before treatment
The pressure is not confined to major operations or long hospital stays. A first appointment with a doctor has risen in price by 15.6 per cent, while average annual spending on paid healthcare has increased by roughly 12 per cent a year over the period described.
Representatives of Russia’s insurance market have said that consultations and examinations are becoming more expensive considerably faster than household incomes. For a patient, that can make the first step in a course of treatment the most difficult one to take. A specialist appointment, an ultrasound scan or a set of laboratory tests may compete directly with rent, food and utility bills.
Several pressures are feeding into the increase. Healthcare providers are paying more for qualified staff, while a shortage of medical workers is forcing institutions to compete for doctors, nurses, technicians and other specialists. Higher wages may be necessary to retain staff, but they also raise the cost of delivering care.
Equipment and consumables are another major expense. Medical technology is costly to buy, maintain and replace, and imported equipment has become more expensive amid sanctions-related restrictions and logistical complications. The same pressures affect some disposable materials used in examinations and treatment.
These costs run through the whole chain of care. A clinic that pays more for staff, diagnostic machinery and supplies has limited ways to absorb the increase. It can raise prices, reduce the number of appointments it offers or postpone investment. For a patient paying out of pocket, each option makes access more difficult.
A budget tilted towards defence
The rise in medical costs is taking place alongside a striking imbalance in Russia’s federal spending plans. The 2026 budget provided about 12.93 trillion roubles for defence, compared with approximately 1.88 trillion roubles for healthcare. Defence funding was therefore almost seven times higher than federal health spending.
That ratio does not prove that a particular consultation or dental procedure became more expensive because of the defence budget. It does, however, indicate how much less room the state has to cushion providers against rising wages, equipment costs and supply bills.
When public funding does not cover those increases, the burden can move to patients, private insurers or regional health budgets. Care may remain officially available while becoming less affordable in practice. The important question is not only whether a clinic continues to operate, but whether a household can pay for the tests needed before an illness worsens.
The war has also intensified competition for qualified workers and placed additional demands on public finances. Medical institutions are competing with other sectors for scarce labour. They may offer higher salaries, limit appointments or accept longer waiting times. None of those responses makes timely care cheaper or easier to obtain.
Delay can become the hidden price
The first consequence of higher prices may not be that patients abandon an ongoing treatment. It may be that they postpone the consultation or examination that would have started it.
People on low incomes and pensioners are particularly exposed because they tend to have less room in their budgets for unexpected expenses. The available figures do not establish how many Russians have already delayed or abandoned care for financial reasons. The risk is nevertheless clear: as the initial cost rises, more patients may decide to wait, especially when symptoms appear manageable in the short term.
For cardiovascular disease, cancer and other serious conditions, delay can mean detection at a later stage. Treatment may then become more complicated, more intrusive and more expensive. It would be unjustified to attribute any future increase in mortality or disability automatically to higher medical prices alone. Delayed access to care can, however, contribute to complications, chronic illness and preventable loss of functioning.
The effects could eventually return to the public system in a more expensive form. Someone unable to pay for an examination early may later require a longer hospital stay, more intensive treatment or social support. A cost postponed by a household has not necessarily disappeared; it may have shifted to a point when treatment is harder to provide.
Who can still afford to act early?
Better-off households can absorb price rises more easily through savings, insurance or the choice of another provider. For poorer families, a specialist consultation can come at the expense of essentials. Older people face particular pressure because they generally need medical assistance more frequently and often live on fixed incomes.
This can turn an economic divide into a health divide. Those who can pay retain more options for early testing and treatment. Those who cannot may wait until symptoms become severe, reducing the scope for simpler or less costly intervention.
The consequences would extend beyond hospitals. More late diagnoses and untreated chronic conditions could reduce people’s ability to work and their productivity. In a country already facing demographic pressures, a deterioration in population health could add to labour shortages while increasing spending on disability benefits and other social support.
How far that scenario develops will depend on inflation, household purchasing power and the future financing of healthcare. The immediate tension is already visible: medical services are becoming more expensive while defence remains the dominant federal priority. The unresolved question is not simply what the next appointment will cost, but how many people will still be able to attend it when timely care matters most.
