Corruption in healthcare is receding: bribes during operations have nearly halved, the minister says

In Ukraine’s healthcare sector a steady decline in corruption is being recorded: these conclusions were published based on the results of the sociological study “Corruption in Ukraine 2025: understanding, perception, prevalence”, the presentation of which took place with the participation of Health Minister Viktor Lyashko.

The survey showed that in 2025 24.2% of citizens encountered corruption-related incidents in medicine. For comparison, in 2024 this figure was 28.5%, and in 2023 — 32.3%. A nearly twofold reduction in cases of corruption during the receipt of medical services and the performance of surgeries was also recorded.

The study was organized by the National Agency for Prevention of Corruption with the support of the EU Anti-Corruption Initiative.

The Ministry of Health links the positive dynamics to systemic changes and digitalization. In particular, 99% of the measures of the State Anti-Corruption Program (of 53 planned) have been implemented, and a number of electronic services have been introduced — from residency placement and an electronic queue for endoprosthetics to a jobs portal for medical professionals.

In addition, electronic data exchange with state registers has been established, rules for conducting competitions for leadership positions in medical institutions have been updated, and the medicine supply system has been reformed through electronic procurement catalogs.

Among specific reforms, the transformation of the Medical and Social Expert Commissions (MSEC) is highlighted, with a shift to a new model for assessing human functioning, which should reduce abuses when establishing disability status.

The combination of these steps is creating a sustained trend toward reducing corruption in the medical field, combining digital tools, transparent management procedures, and strengthened oversight. Further risk reduction will depend on the consistency of reforms and their real implementation at all levels.

Earlier we wrote:

• Hospitals as “business”: over UAH 100 million stolen on fictitious services — suspicions in Mykolaiv as well
• Police are cracking down on medical schemes across Ukraine: dozens of raids over frauds worth hundreds of millions
• Wounded from the front — and a “price list” in the ward: a doctor demanded 30,000 hryvnias from a defender
• In Mykolaiv more than 20 million “disappeared” from a children’s hospital: management under suspicion
• Prosecutor became an “invalid” in one day — now, together with the doctor, he will face trial