The damage caused by government purchases of medical gloves could amount to 1.4 billion rubles.

An organized group of entrepreneurs profited from government procurement focused on import substitution: for four years, they issued Chinese medical gloves for those produced in Russia. This was reported to Izvestia by the international Anti-Counterfeit Association.

As noted in the association, there was no production of these medical devices in Russia — the gloves were simply repackaged and passed off as domestic. The damage to the budget as a result of fraudulent actions could amount to 1.4 billion rubles, Izvestia estimated. A criminal case has been opened on one of the procurement episodes.

"Starting in 2022, counterfeit medical gloves from Asia have filled the market under the guise of Russian ones. According to the association's estimates, about 90% of all domestic medical examination gloves from the register of Russian industrial products are not of Russian origin. They do not meet the criteria established by the government decree on the confirmation of the production of Russian industrial products," said Alexander Nosenko, head of the Center for the Protection of Copyright Holders of the international Association "Anti—Counterfeit".

According to Nosenko, counterfeit medical gloves do not meet the criteria of durability and sterility. They are dangerous to the life and health of doctors, as they do not protect against infection in contact with infected patients. Roszdravnadzor has repeatedly withdrawn Chinese counterfeits from circulation, and the FAS of Sellers has entered sellers in the Register of unscrupulous Suppliers. However, they continue to circulate in the market today.

Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:

Around the fingers: counterfeit medical gloves could deprive the budget of 1.4 billion