Colombia’s Minister of Social Protection said that between 40 and 45 health insurance companies (EPS) will be permanently eliminated beginning in mid-October.
The government’s decision follows a major corruption scandal in which health insurance companies embezzled more than $2.5 billion.
Minister Mauricio Santamaria said that the liquidation decree for the EPS will likely be ready between September and October, but that the final time limit is the beginning of December, Caracol Radio reported Thursday.
The EPS are to be liquidated for failure to comply with quality standards or are financially unstable, reported Radio Nacional de Colomba.
Santamaria also said that a new government health plan (POS), which covers any citizen with an EPS plan, and is revised every two years, will be ready this month.
Meanwhile, he said that the intervention into EPS Saludcoop, which begain in mid-May will continue for longer than initially planned. “This intervention will continue for various more months, the whole team [of employees] is being renewed with the objective of having the best there, in order to guarantee services to subscribers, such as payments to providers and doctors,” said Santamaria.