How a Charitable Campaign Works in Armenia: Promised Medical Care Not Provided

The "For You, Women" charitable healthcare campaign, initiated by Yerevan Municipality and dedicated to the so-called Women’s Month (March 8 to April 7), does not function properly, Epress.am was told by a woman (she wished to remain anonymous) who has applied to the program. The hospital she had applied to rejected her application with the justification “we no longer have any room,” the woman said.

According to the official statement issued by the Yerevan Municipality, women are to receive free-of charge gynecological, ophthalmological services, thyroid ultrasounds, CAT scans, and if necessary, surgical interventions within the framework of the “For You, Women” charitable campaign.

Our interviewee explained that when informed about the campaign, she immediately went to the polyclinic on March 9, received a voucher and went to the Shengavit Medical Center because she needed a gynecological examination and treatment. On March 18, the Medical Center called her and asked to pick her documents and go someplace else, because there were no vacant places left. According to the woman, it would be pointless to go to another hospital now, if she was “late” applying so early.

The woman also said that she had previosuly applied to “Aragil” Fund for Assistance of Reproductive Medicine, where the RA First Lady Rita Sargsyan is an Honorary Chairman of the Board of Trustee. In December 2014, her files were transferred from the foundation to the Shengavit Medical Center for surgery. They promised the woman that they would call within a month but she has not received a call since.

“I needed a small surgical intervention. It’s most likely for that reason that neither “Aragil”, nor “For You, Women” initiative wanted to deal with it,” the woman assumed.

Epress.am tried to obtain clarification from the Yerevan Municipality. Spokesperson for the Municipality, Artur Gevorgyan, said that all women who applied to the campaign have to receive free-of-charge medical care. “The campaign does not finish until the last woman receives medical treatment,” said Gevorgyan. He reassured that the campaign would not end on April 7 and that from March 9 to April 7 is only the time to register.