VMRO-DPMNE Secretary General Igor Janusev called on the Government to immediately remedy the shortcomings in the healthcare system, and to provide doctors and nurses with the necessary protective equipment.

There is a lack of gloves, masks, visors. Doctors and nurses are left without protective overalls and are working almost barehanded at a time of a pandemic. This makes us all vulnerable as a state, Janusev said.

More than 80 doctors and nurses were confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus so far, most of them in the course of doing their jobs. Social media were flooded with messages from doctors asking for help, including with citing the hospital where they work and reports that they don’t have the necessary equipment. But Healthcare Minister Venko Filipce denied Janusev’s claim, insisting that the doctors and nurses are well equipped.

I insist that nothing is missing and that there are sufficient reserves. We inspected 79 hospitals and determined that none lacks equipment and we are currently purchasing 12.000 N95 masks, 20.000 overalls and 500.000 surgical masks, Filipce said.

Janusev called on the Government to set aside 10 million EUR in a fund that will be usedto procure medical protective equipment, and to get Macedonian textile companies to produce what they can from the equipment, on top of the emergency import of what can’t be made here.