MSP faces a 51% shortage in its hospitals, a shortage considered “critical” according to reports from the same health entity.
In the last three years, the comprehensive health network has purchased $ 428 million in drugs through the common and special regime contracting systems. Of these, the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute (IESS) allocated $ 254 million; the Armed Forces $ 7.9 million; the National Police $ 3.6 million; and the Ministry of Health $ 162 million.
However, the MSP faces a 51% shortage in its hospitals, a shortage considered ‘critical’ according to reports from the same health entity and which is manifested in user complaints in sit-ins, protests and on social media.
One of the causes that prevents the provision of drugs, points out the MSP, is the lack of a new catalog of drugs that includes all the drugs in the basic table that currently do not appear in the electronic catalog process. By not being able to use this tool, the institutions buy through other processes that take more time and “do not allow an optimal and effective supply,” says a report from the MSP.
The Ministry of Health argues that only 10% of medicines are in the electronic catalog, a process that he considers “suitable” for the acquisition of drugs, since “the good is available to the contracting entity, and the supplier is obliged to deliver wherever the need arises.”
Ministry of Public Health acquired 43 of 123 medicines to supply its hospitals
For its part, Sercop pointed out that “although it is true that catalog purchases are much faster, in accordance with the annual procurement planning that all State entities must carry out, the time needed to carry out other types of procurement processes can be estimated “, as a reverse auction.
Sercop explains that both they and the entities of the public health network are in charge of selecting drug providers, defined by the MSP. After which, Sercop signs the agreements to incorporate them into the electronic catalog.
In September 2021, the MSP requested the inclusion of 780 items of medicines in the next corporate auction. However, Sercop points out, there was an impediment to including drugs, because since May 2020 -through Executive Decree 1033- the hiring of a logistics operator was required to provide the storage, distribution and delivery service of medicines.
This requirement implied variations in the reference prices if the providers had to deliver the medication in one center or in all the provinces. Currently, Sercop no longer has this difficulty, because the decree was repealed on December 28. (I)
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