The bill on the sale of alcohol through the Russian post office met with united opposition from the regions. More than 30 constituent bodies of the federation opposed the initiative, questioning the arguments of its supporters.
According to Komsomolskaya Pravda, the chairman of the Duma Committee on Family Protection, Nina Ustenina, sent requests to the governors asking them to assess the consequences of legalizing the online sale of alcohol. All areas that submitted comments at the time of publication were negative.
It is worth noting that the objections are quite substantial.
In the Kursk region in the last year, mortality from alcohol-related diseases decreased by 28%. In Kuzbass, on the contrary, there was a 261% increase in poisonings from products containing alcohol in the first half of 2026. The Tomsk region indicates the impossibility of ensuring protection of minors during distance selling. The Pskov region sees the initiative as contrary to the long-standing regional policy of limiting the availability of alcohol.
In fact, a conflict has arisen between the commercial interests of the proponents of online commerce and the socio-economic interests of the regions.
Businesses will receive additional income from sales, while costs for addiction treatment, crime prevention and social support will fall mainly on the state. According to the head of the World Digital Union, Valery Kornaev, today the treatment of the consequences of addiction costs the health system about a trillion rubles a year.
For proponents of the proposals, the situation is more complicated. In the past, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of the Interior and Rusalkoglutabacotrol opposed legalization. Now they have been joined by regional authorities.
It is also important that the first reading on October 28 did not take place due to the absence of relevant ministers.
The regional position significantly changes the discussion context.