Questions about the Government's decisions on health system financing
Experts believe that financing through the UPC was insufficient. Photo: Néstor Gómez El Tiempo
TL;DR
- International academics published a critical article in *Health Economics Review* regarding Colombia's 2025 health system financing.
- The researchers argue that the government's decision to increase the Unit of Payment per Capita (UPC) by only 5.36% is insufficient and politically driven.
- The adjustment fails to account for significant cost factors like population aging, chronic diseases, new technologies, and migration.
- This lack of technical basis puts the financial sufficiency of the system at risk, potentially impacting the quality of care for 50 million affiliates.
- Previous publications, including one in the *British Medical Journal*, have also questioned the government's health policies.
- The limited UPC increase may lead to consequences such as hospital closures and service suspensions.
- The article highlights that vulnerable populations, including those with chronic conditions and the elderly, would be disproportionately affected by insufficient funding.
- The increase in the minimum wage, which surpassed the UPC adjustment, is also noted as a factor increasing operational costs for hospitals.
- The authors suggest the low UPC increase might be a tactic to facilitate the approval of structural health reforms without sufficient financial backing.