Warehouses supplying the vast majority of Ukraine's pharmacies have been destroyed in a series of Russian attacks over recent months.
Medical supplies worth about $200m (£145m) were destroyed in just two strikes in December and October.
A large warehouse storing medicines in the city of Dnipro was destroyed in a Russian air strike on 6 December, resulting in about $110m worth of medicines being lost—estimated at up to 30% of Ukraine's monthly supply.
It was a missile and drone strike against our facility. The missiles flew past, but the drones hit it, said Dmytro Babenko, acting director-general of pharmaceutical distributor BADM.
He continued, They caused a fire which unfortunately proved impossible to contain and the whole facility was destroyed. BADM is one of two companies that together supply about 85% of Ukrainian pharmacies.
The other firm, Optima Pharm, reported damages from strikes on its warehouses three times this year, leading to a reported financial loss of over $100m due to damage to its main storage facility.
These attacks complicate the treatment of sick and wounded individuals in Ukraine, especially after nearly four years of full-scale war.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) disclosed that it lost $195,000 worth of medication and supplies from the Dnipro warehouse, affecting approximately 30,000 people in need.
According to Ukrainian authorities, Russia has deliberately targeted medical infrastructures, which Moscow denies. The government claims that over 2,500 medical institutions have suffered damage, with more than 500 medical professionals killed as a result of the conflict.
The World Health Organization noted that there have been 2,763 attacks on Ukraine's health system since the start of the invasion, marking a 12% increase in 2025 compared to the previous year.
Despite the destruction, Babenko expressed hope that the affected medical supplies could be restored in the coming weeks, although some specific shortages were anticipated.
