On Marathon Day, the Seventh Committee of the House of Representatives approved 93 articles of the health reform project, adding to the 24 approved in previous sessions. This means that 84% of articles have been flagged with 117 articles out of a total of 139.
Of the 93 approved articles on health reform, only 31 were revised, while the rest were approved as they were initially presented in the paper. At present, only 22 points are yet to be discussed and voted on. From the results of the debate, the government’s majority is clear, as the opposition’s votes did not come close to half of the total.
The session ended with the approval of Articles 1, 2, 19, 22, 56, 57, 58, 62, 64, 65, 67, 68, 77 and 78 (around 09:37 PM) and Article 9, of the health reform. 17, 26 and 51 at 09:57 pm. After that, the chairman of the commission, Egmeth Escaf, adjourned the session and scheduled it for the next Tuesday morning at 07:00.
“The new health system will reach all Colombians and Colombians in all regions of the country. This is another step towards achieving the country we want!”, celebrated the Ministry of Health at the end of the session.
ADRES and EPS: I support the change in their roles proposed in health reform
One of the most outstanding moments occurred during the ratification of Articles 60 and 76, which give powers to the Administrator of the Resources of the General System of Social Security in Health (ADDRESS) to manage the resources of the health system.
Similarly, it has been entrusted with the responsibility of being the sole payer to the health system, guaranteeing payment of invoices for services rendered within a maximum period of 30 days to institutions providing public, private and hybrid health services.
For EPS, change will be a reality. The Seventh Commission approved Article 49, which defines the nature and functions of health and life management entities, as well as the requirements of interested promoters to enable them to make changes within a period of two years.
Prosecutor’s Office dissatisfied with the process of health reform
Margarita Cabello, head of the nation’s attorney general’s office, expressed her disagreement with the procedure adopted by the Seventh Commission for the approval of health reform. For the official, “this practice can affect the system in a negative way, so it is quite possible that, in addition, there may be procedural defects in Congress.”
In the same way, he expressed that, “due to the desire to quickly approve the texts of this reform, the various texts of the Articles may be at risk of not being discussed with reasoned judgment and thorough analysis”; Which is to say, without a thorough analysis of what the approval of health reform would mean for citizens.
