Armenia’s underground salt mine asthma clinic nears closure over funding cuts
The withdrawal of state funding from a Soviet-era underground speleotherapy clinic in Armenia highlights the tension between patient demand for alternative respiratory treatments and the push for evidence-based healthcare spending.
The Avan salt mine clinic, located 250 metres beneath the outskirts of Yerevan, is on the brink of closure following the Armenian government’s withdrawal of state funding. Daily patient capacity has plummeted from 60 individuals to roughly five, as visitors must now pay approximately £20 for each treatment session.
Operating since 1987, the facility offers speleotherapy, an alternative treatment rooted in the belief that the mine’s allergen-free, salt-saturated air alleviates respiratory diseases. The underground microclimate maintains a constant 19C temperature, entirely isolated from surface pollution, noise, and radiation.
This funding cut, enacted in 2019, was a direct consequence of Armenia’s broader healthcare reforms ahead of introducing universal health insurance. State officials concluded that speleotherapy lacked the rigorous scientific evidence required to justify ongoing public financial support, forcing a shift toward strictly evidence-based coverage.
The decision underscores a persistent economic and policy challenge for European and post-Soviet health systems: how to allocate limited public resources when patient demand outpaces clinical validation. While the state prioritises proven medical interventions, patients argue that decades of anecdotal success should hold weight.
Mikayel Torosian, an asthma sufferer, stated that the underground regimen saved him after every other treatment failed. Similarly, Alvart Alihanyan has travelled from Russia to attend the clinic regularly for the past ten years, insisting the visible results negate the need for further studies.
Dr Anush Voskanyan, a physician at the clinic since 1989, maintains that the therapy is highly effective, especially for children with severe allergies. She noted that some patients experience a complete cessation of asthma attacks after a single three-week course of daily six-hour sessions.
However, respiratory specialists across the region generally classify speleotherapy as a complementary measure that may ease symptoms but cannot replace conventional medicine. With most similar facilities across the former Soviet bloc already shuttered, the Avan mine represents one of the last remaining outposts of this practice.
For now, the clinic operates on a precarious financial footing. Beyond its contested medical benefits, it continues to provide a rare, disconnected environment free from modern digital noise, even as its long-term viability remains in serious doubt.
