Putin orders mass reproductive health checks as birth rate hits 200-year low

President Vladimir Putin has instructed Health Minister Mikhail Murashko to expand reproductive medical examinations for Russian citizens in an effort to reverse a collapsing birth rate. Putin stated that coverage of reproductive health assessments must increase for both men and women to encourage more parents. Demographer Alexei Raksha estimates that births in Russia have declined for 11 consecutive years, with only 272,000 babies born in January-March 2026 — 6% fewer than the same period in 2025, which itself set an anti-record not seen since the turn of the 18th-19th centuries. Rosstat has classified official demographic statistics since spring 2025, making independent verification difficult.