Prime Minister Vladimir Putin made this suggestion in a meeting with Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. "And I really mean it," he stressed.
Large but ineffective expenditures for the purchase of medical equipment in some regions have been raising concerns among the federal authorities. Prime Minister Putin found an unexpected solution to this issue on Friday. When Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported that city officials had managed to reduce the prices on purchased equipment fourfold over the last three years, the Prime Minister suggested that Moscow might handle the purchase of medical equipment for those regions that burn through resources inefficiently.
"I will request that the Ministry of Healthcare speed up this process and have the city conduct these tenders for those regions that cannot seem to make economical purchases for themselves," he said.
At the same time, Vladimir Putin clarified that this move was not intended to simply chastise the regional officials for their carelessness. This process can be improved. "And I mean it!" Mr Putin was adamant about transferring these purchase rights to Moscow's authorities.
Mayor Sobyanin accepted Vladimir Putin's suggestion: Moscow is willing to offer other regions a trading platform and even consulting experts.
Two purchase tenders for complex medical equipment valued at a total of 3.8 billion roubles have been conducted in the capital this year, reported Sobyanin. The cost of the equipment dropped 45% after negotiating. A total of 2 billion roubles were saved as a result. Moscow will allocate 23 billion roubles for medical equipment this year. Half of this amount will come from the federal budget, the other half from the Moscow budget. "If we follow through on this, the total savings will be nearly 30%," added Sobyanin.
The prime minister appreciated Sobyanin's achievements noting that some regional administrations were falling behind. The Ministry of Economic Development will have to work with these regions. They can be mentored by Moscow's officials.
"The legal requirements are being prepared and everything we need is included in the law," said Mikhail Yevrayev, head of the Department on State Procurement Control for the Federal Antimonopoly Service. "Any local government can achieve quality results with the kind of a competent and professional approach used by Moscow's officials."
Tatarstan, Altai Region and Buryatia are among the regions that successfully negotiate purchases. The regions that fall behind have a tendency to blame "a bad law" and not the quality of their own work.
"We totally agree with this approach," said the official. "If the regional authorities fail to purchase this medical equipment efficiently, we can always work out a plan to conduct tenders for other regions."
Additional legislation will be needed to transfer procurement authority to Sobyanin's team, explained Ivan Begtin, the head of the OpenGovData.ru project. Though he has doubts about the efficiency of such measures. In addition, sudden savings could cause other apprehension in the government, he thinks.
"If these figures are true, I'd say that a large drop in these costs is not a positive sign," said Begtin. "It would call for a legal review of past and current purchases." The situation shows that either the previous contracts were poorly negotiated, or that medical equipment is currently being purchased at very low prices which also should set off alarms for the government. Generally, the Prime Minister has raised this issue in order to point out that Ministry of Economic Development and FAS (Federal Anti-Monopoly Sevice) should control the state purchase system and make sure that contracts are concluded legally with reputable suppliers and producers directly, without any third parties."
This year's total allotment for regional purchases of medical equipment amounts to more than 104 billion roubles. Nevertheless, medical equipment tenders have been attracting government's close attention for two years. A scandal broke out in the summer of 2010 when prices for tomography scanners increased threefold by the time they reached hospitals.
The amendments that provide for substantiation of prices by contract-givers were included in the 94th Federal Law in April. In addition, the Ministry of Economic Development suggested that intermediaries are not allowed at tendering processes, and that a producer's certificate be made obligatory for those participating in tendering processes. Though, these amendments have yet to be made law.
Maria Zhebit