Petro presents health reform proposal, calls supporters to the streets

President Gustavo Petro of Colombia presented his long-awaited proposal to reform the country’s healthcare system yesterday. True to the promises made during his electoral campaign, the congressional bill plans for a much more state-controlled system, which no longer seeks to guarantee assistance to each individual but to each territory, with a special focus on primary care. 

As opposed to what Health Minister Carolina Corcho had suggested, however, the proposal does not exclude private insurers, known in Colombia as EPSs. 

The reform states that EPSs will no longer serve as intermediaries, administrating resources and contributions to pay hospitals and healthcare professionals for patient care. 

Instead, the new system will have a single health fund managed by Adres, a body linked to the Health Ministry, which will pay hospitals, clinics, and the EPSs for the services provided.

In Colombia’s current healthcare system, workers pay to be affiliated with a certain EPS, whose services are financed by contributions from their employers. Virtually all Colombians have health coverage under the current system, created three decades ago, but there are regions where services are simply not available even if the local population is in theory covered.

After meeting with at least ten EPSs last week, Mr. Petro presented a bill that proposes a hybrid model in which the EPSs play a role in big cities and departments, where their best service networks are available. 

The reform also aims to build thousands of health centers across the country that will serve as a base for family doctors to visit patients regularly. 

So far, Mr. Petro has succeeded in building a broad coalition in Congress, having pushed through a tax reform last year. The healthcare reform, however, seems to be a more sensitive matter, which may cause tensions within his alliance as it already did in his cabinet.

Senate President Roy Barreras and Mr. Petro’s current education minister, Alejandro Gaviria, who led the health ministry in past governments, have shown resistance to changes in the area.

But it is still too early to say whether the population will support the reform. A survey conducted in February by the National Association of Businessmen of Colombia (ANDI) revealed that 63 percent disagreed with the idea of ending EPSs as they function today.

Mr. Petro called on Colombians to take to the streets this Tuesday in a demonstration of support for his proposals — a risky move through which the president hopes to create consensus among lawmakers. 

It will then be the opposition’s turn. Right-wing parties have scheduled a march against the reforms proposed by Mr. Petro for Wednesday, hoping to bring together at least part of the more than 10 million people who voted for Rodolpho Hernandez last May.

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