The Social Security Institute (IPS) of Paraguay, under the presidency of Dr. Isaías Fretes, announced a comprehensive inspection of the administration of its properties and the management of medications and supplies. The measure comes after the General Audit of the Executive Branch, headed by Alberto Cabrera, detected that the previous management, led by Jorge Brítez, complied with only 2.5% of the audit recommendations.
Cabrera explained that the review of the properties — about 800 properties — will seek to determine the legal and administrative status of each asset, verify rental contracts and maintenance costs, and assess whether the properties generate benefits compatible with the resources invested. “We want to know how many are titled, how much they cost the IPS, who is renting them and for how much, and do a cost-benefit study,” he said. The inspection will also include control of the medication stock, from the health park to national distribution, focusing on documentation of bids and contracts. Cabrera expects to complete the work by the end of August.
During the monitoring of the audits, Cabrera revealed that the Brítez administration complied with only two out of every hundred recommendations. “Out of 100 recommendations, only two were fulfilled. This shows that the IPS internal control system is very weak and failed,” he declared. Fretes harshly criticized the previous management and guaranteed that his administration will follow up on all observations. “No one listened to Mr. Cabrera. Of the recommendations that should straighten and make transparent, only 2% were fulfilled. That will not happen with us; if there is something to correct, it will be corrected immediately,” he said.
The IPS Health Manager, Derlis León, reported that the final list of cuts to the formulary will be defined next Wednesday. So far, 817 items are scheduled to be excluded, all considered unused. Fretes highlighted that the reduction — estimated at about 20% — will represent significant savings, although there are no concrete figures yet. “We have to close the escape taps. One way is to work on the most critical points, and changing the formulary is entering the heart of corruption. Of the 4,000 items including supplies, 817 will go out,” he said. He added that, under the new scheme, the administrative area will no longer lead medication purchases, which will become the direct responsibility of the medical structure.