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Duma to toughen governors’ responsibility for maintenance of psychiatric hospitals

The fire at the psychiatric hospital took away the lives of 38 people

MOSCOW, April 26 (Itar-Tass) - Russian State Duma committee on healthcare will submit to the lower house of parliament amendments that are expected to come under discussion at the spring session of the house and are aimed at toughening administrative responsibility of regional governors and head physicians of psychiatric hospitals for inappropriate maintenance of these establishments, the committee’s chairman, Sergei Kalashnikov told reporters on Friday.

“I strongly feel we should introduce personal administrative responsibility for head physicians and for regional governors as well,” Kalashnikov said in his comments on Friday’s fire in a hospital near Moscow.

The governor should bear personal responsibility for the proper maintenance of these establishments as well as of shelter homes for elderly people, the disabled or children.

“The committee is set to introduce the amendments to Russian laws - on healthcare and on psychiatric treatment, and to the Russian Code of Administrative Offences,” Kalashnikov said.

The fire at the psychiatric hospital that broke out in the early hours of Friday in the township of Ramenky near Moscow took away the lives of 38 people. Only three people, a nurse and two patients, were lucky to escape.

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