Russian attacks have systematically destroyed warehouses responsible for supplying the vast majority of Ukraine’s pharmacies, wiping out hundreds of millions of dollars worth of critical medicines and medical supplies in recent months.
Two companies, BADM and Optima Pharm, which together supply roughly 85% of the country’s pharmacies, have been repeatedly targeted. On December 6, a missile and drone strike ignited a fire that completely destroyed BADM’s main warehouse in Dnipro, resulting in an estimated $110 million loss—representing up to 30% of Ukraine’s monthly medical supply.
“They caused a fire which unfortunately proved impossible to contain and the whole facility was destroyed,” said Dmytro Babenko, BADM’s acting director-general.
Optima Pharm has been struck three times since August, with its main Kyiv storage facility hit on October 25. That attack alone destroyed over $100 million in supplies, according to the company’s CFO, Artem Suprun.
While Russia’s defense ministry denies targeting civilian infrastructure—claiming strikes hit a drone factory in October and a military equipment warehouse in December—the repeated destruction of pharmaceutical distributors has created a cascuing health crisis. With supply chains severed and national stockpiles decimated, Ukraine’s medical system now faces one of its most severe logistical challenges since the war began.
By James Kisoo
