The doctor of a young cystic fibrosis patient says that Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce blocked the girl on Instagram after she pleaded for his help.

The patient, Flora Gashi (20), says that she and two other patients are in bad condition and desperately need Ivacaftor, but the Ministry is not providing it. The drug is not approved to be used for treatment in Macedonia.

All I want is for the medicine to be made available so I can begin to live my life, Gashi told TV21.

Minister Filipce invests a lot in his public image, and was one of the main features of the electoral campaign of his SDSM party, despite the fact that it was held at a time of major spike in the coronavirus infection and mortality statistics. Filipce and SDSM leader Zoran Zaev even did a photo-op with the first heart transplant patient in Macedonia days before the elections. But when things go bad for his department, Filipce is apparently not interested in hearing the criticism.

After Flora shared her story on Instagram she was blocked by Minister Filipce, says her doctor Vlora Recica.