ABSTRACT
After a brief comment on the rare positive moments in the “Soviet” medical scene, the dimensions of the medical crisis in the former Soviet Union are addressed in terms of overall trends in mortality and morbidity. Mortality is climbing in Russia and Ukraine sufficiently to exceed fertility in the last several years, and morbidity in many cases is exploding as difficulties continue in quality of health services, living conditions, lack of medications, poor facilities, and so forth. Details on the explosion of diphtheria cases in Moscow as well as the former U.S.S.R. as a whole are given as a (hopefully worst-case) scenario of the relative dimensions of the overall problem. Vaccination coverage is worsening and the potential for increases in this and other diseases are increasing. Infant mortality figures are adjusted to account for various difficulties in determining their actual level. Both Soviet and my own adjusted figures are shown. Poor facilities, poor supplies, and poor medical staff finish the basic review. Additionally a very brief description of some of the outside assistance is given, but the demand for drugs and other supplies is so great that major problems continue. 841A table on infectious diseases (incidence and rate per 100,000 population) during the years 1960 to 1990 is appended.
