Russia, one pharmacy at a time

A pharmacy in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg has decided to ban one of their major sources of revenue — condoms.

Now it sells only medicine that has been blessed, children’s food, hygienic goods that, according to the archbishop of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye, Vikentiy, who personally led the consecration ceremony, have now doubled their effectiveness.

The pharmacists say that the decision to stop selling contraceptives — which accounts for 10 percent of their profit — is their personal contribution to improving the demographic situation in Russia. The Yekaterinburg diocese has described the deed of the Urals businessmen as heroic and hopes that other stores will follow suit.