“I don’t think they are the ones who determine how the oversight body should act.”

The health system is in crisis. One example of this reality is that more than 33 million patients today belong to some EPS entered by the health watchdog. That is, the health of 3 out of every 5 Colombians is managed by the state through Supersalud.

In this sense, within the framework of the Health Forum and the 30th Andy Pharmaceutical Forum that will be held this week in the city of Cartagena, the Superintendent of Health, Luis Carlos Leal Angarita, confirmed that the health system had not exercised appropriate monitoring of the actors. This partly explains the crisis.

This is reflected, according to Leal, in the findings at Nueva EPS, EPS Sura and EPS Western Health Service (SOS) submitted in recent days. “The first thing to do when facing a crisis is to acknowledge it. Consider practicing effective discussion and make the discussion permanent,” the official said.

In the context of a conversation, with Nueva EPS auditor Julio Rincon, and Famisanar auditor Sandra Jaramillo, the supervisor emphasized that the latest results show that EPS has not been efficient with resources, and that it was necessary to increase a “radical solution to the problem” of financing in the sector, instead of simply increasing resources. Annually and postpone the problem.

The official also noted that if measures such as central procurement can help resolve the current crisis, they should be implemented. “I return and focus on the principle of efficiency in managing health resources. We are talking about public resources that have a specific purpose, which is to protect a fundamental right. Understanding that protecting health resources and making them more efficient will ensure that more and more people have better access to the system and access it in a timely manner. If the practice of centralized procurement leads to better performance of these resources and timely delivery of any kind of technology, that is great and welcome,” Leal explained.

Finally, the supervisor emphasized that they will continue to work and take action to protect the resources and that the action plan developed by the EPS auditors will be strengthened with the aim of ensuring compliance.

Later, in an interview with the media, Lille attacked the EPS union, Acemi, over the statements made by its president Ana Maria Vesga in recent days about the figures presented by Supersalud. According to the supervisor, it cannot become a “tradition” for EPS to be “in the habit of keeping personalities a secret from them.”

“I don’t think it is Asimi who says how the oversight body should behave. The oversight body is responsible for enforcing the law, checking the standards and requirements and making them known to the country. EPS has suddenly become accustomed to hiding any kind of personality from them, because this should not be the case.” tradition. So Dr. Vesga may or may not agree; It has to bear responsibility as a representative of EPS, which is the body that supervises the supervisory body. The Authority will continue to do its work because it is its duty. “So I regret your disastrous opinion,” said Lyell.

In addition, he stressed that at the present time the process of studying voluntary withdrawal from the three EPS that requested it has not begun. This is because EPS Compensar, EPS Salud Bolívar and EPS Sura have not delivered the documents required to start analyzing the application.

Andy calls for us to “get serious about the present and future of Colombia’s health system”:

Within the framework of the 30th Andy Health and Pharmaceutical Forum, the President of the National Association of Colombian Entrepreneurs (ANDY), Bruce McMaster, called for “speaking seriously about the health system, with responsibility and greatness, so that in the future we can look back and say that we as a society were able to strengthen it and overcome Identify shortcomings and generate new capabilities.

Likewise, President Andy indicated that the aforementioned dialogue should take into account three basic tasks: first, the rescue and financial stability of the system that is currently in crisis; Secondly, salvaging operability, establishing specific procedures and strategies that ensure the development of activities in a transition scenario in the face of possible changes, at all stages of that process, and thirdly, structural development of the system, taking into account aspects for improvement for the future, with sustainability.

“The Colombian health system, built over 30 years, has become a benchmark for the region, not only in terms of high coverage, but also in terms of efficiency in the use of resources. This can be seen, for example, in the low out-of-pocket expenditure that health For people, compared to other countries in the world. In this sense, the economic question is key in the conversation, because in a scenario of change it is necessary to determine what the cost will be and what the sources of resources will be and who will bear the risks, hopefully not directly the families who pay,” McMaster said “It’s worth it in the end.”

Likewise, the union leader highlighted that in recent decades the health system has proven itself as one of the greatest drivers of investment dynamism in Colombia, however, this trend has begun to decline in the last two years.

Specifically, in 2019, for example, FDI related to this sector amounted to US$546 million; In 2020, due to the epidemic, it peaked at 998 million US dollars; Then in 2021, the investment reached $579 million, and in 2022 it decreased by 8% compared to the previous year, to $536 million, and in 2023 it decreased again compared to the previous year, by 11%, to $479 million.

Edwin Caicedo

Environment and health journalist

@CaicedoUcros