MOSCOW, October 31 (RAPSI) – Excessive criminal responsibility should be taken off doctors working with strong anesthetics, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during his meeting with public members in the Kaliningrad Region on Thursday.

However, the President noted that Russian citizens must be secured from illegal distribution of drugs.

Putin issued this statement in response for a proposal to mitigate liability of medicine workers, who can lose strong painkillers without malign intent.

He agreed with the suggestion but referred to criminal cases of doctors using their job position to illegally sell narcotic drugs. Putin said that it is necessary to protect people against such crimes.

Putin believes that superfluous requirements lead to negative consequences and hinder medical staff in their work.