Health officials in Uzbekistan say the authorities have decided to charge hospital patients for food, the latest in a series of cutbacks in government provision since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The officials said patients who couldn't afford to pay would still be given food, but they said, the charges were necessary to help the government pay for new medical equipment.

Correspondents say many patients already provide their own medicines as well as syringes and drips because of hospital shortages.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
 

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