Mexico senate to investigate potentially massive healthcare fraud

The Mexican senate has requested a special report on alleged irregularities at low-cost healthcare program Seguro Popular, which the current administration is in the process of replacing.

On Wednesday, the upper house passed a measure to file a formal petition with the federal attorney general's office (FGR) to request the investigation after federal auditing agency (ASF) found irregular handling of more than 301bn pesos (US$15.7bn) in federal funding at Seguro Popular between 2013 and 2017.

The ASF audit included 174 inquiries in 17 states, targeting staff compensation and the purchase of medicine.

In reviewing expenditures tied to the 301bn pesos, senate majority leader Ricardo Monreal, found it particularly worrisome "that nearly 30% of the total would be under the heading of medicine, healing materials and other supplies, purchased at a price higher than the benchmark, or payments that exceed the percentage authorized for that item."

Following through on expected actions with the healthcare body, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) said on March 26 that the government would be replacing Seguro Popular with a new platform involving 20,000 "top notch" clinics in areas of the country that lack medical attention.

Seguro Popular, despite its problems, reported having handled 27mn medical consultations in the first half of 2018 as well as 1.4mn emergency room visits.