A Colombian judge has ordered the five day imprisonment of health insurance company Nueva EPS’ scientific director, Tayla Tamer, for disobeying court orders to perform a surgical intervention on an elderly woman, newspaper El Espectador reported Thursday.
Marco Vargas, a man apparently connected with the 80-year-old patient, had filed a lawsuit against Tamer in March for failure to perform the surgery, and a Bogota judge ruled on April 7 that by not doing so, the director was violating the patient’s right to health and dignity, and that she was obligated to comply.
A month later, Tamer had not obeyed the ruling, and Vargas turned to the court again for constitutional protection, accusing the director of contempt of court.
The judge ruled in favor of Vargas, and ordered Tamer’s five day detention in prison.
Nueva EPS is one of a number of Colombian health insurance companies currently under investigation for alleged involvement in the major health care corruption scandal that is estimated to have cost the state as much as $2.5 billion and violated many citizens’ right to adequate health care.