Corte suprema ordina la cattura dei responsabili del "cartello dei recuperi in salute"

The Supreme Court of Colombia has ordered the immediate arrest of Claudia Patricia Rojas Puerta and Luis Andrés Ruiz Martínez, two former officials of the Ministry of Health and Social Protection linked to the so-called "health recovery cartel." Both were found responsible for participating in a scheme that allowed health insurance providers (EPS) to receive payments for claims that had been rejected by public administrators. In exchange for these actions, the individuals involved shared commissions from the funds disbursed. Rojas Puerta, who was the coordinator of the Recovery Analysis Group within the ministry, faces a prison sentence of 24 years and a fine of COP $16.013 million. Ruiz Martínez, a systems engineer with the ministry, received a sentence of 22 years and six months in prison and a fine of COP $11.467 million. The court denied both the possibility of house arrest and conditional release. The decision, dated September 2, 2026, upheld the 2021 conviction by the Bogotá High Court after the defendants challenged the ruling. The Supreme Court confirmed their guilt of aggravated embezzlement, specifically the improper appropriation of public resources, and explicitly ordered their "immediate capture." No further appeals are possible against this ruling. The case outlines how officials from the ministry and representatives of intermediary companies managed payments for recoveries that had been fully or partially rejected by the Fidufosyga 2005 consortium. This entity administered funds from the Solidarity and Guarantee Fund (Fosyga) and reviewed whether EPS claims met requirements to receive money. Recoveries were the mechanism through which EPS requested reimbursement from the state for medications, procedures, or services they had provided that were not included in the mandatory health plan. To obtain payment, they needed to submit documentation and pass an audit. If inconsistencies were found, the claim could be rejected, a decision known as a "gloss." The corruption scheme operated on these rejected claims. EPS hired intermediaries to manage the recovery of funds and agreed to pay them for their services. Within the ministry, Rojas Puerta and Ruiz Martínez created internal memos and notes that allowed them to override objections and process disbursements, despite lacking authority to do so and ignoring audit controls. Some of the money received by intermediaries ended up in the hands of the officials. According to the ruling, the intermediary companies also suggested responses to objections, known to both ex-officials. The court concluded that these individuals used their positions to route already questioned requests to their department and facilitate payments. The funds disbursed benefited several EPS entities, including Salud Colpatria, Ecoopsos, Coomeva, Solsalud, and Famisanar. One example detailed in the ruling involves Coomeva, which received more than COP $8.022 million for six recovery packages. The EPS made six payments totaling approximately COP $207 million to QAV Consultores. Judicial reconstruction indicates that 60 percent of this amount, around COP $124 million, went to Rojas Puerta, while the rest was distributed among other participants in the scheme. The court stated that evidence showed the convicted individuals knew their actions were illegal. "They decided to design a mechanism..." Separately, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed preliminary findings from an investigation into contracts signed during the previous government's administration. The ministry reviewed 811 contracts worth nearly COP $92.846 billion and verified the proper use of public funds. Of these, 551 contracts involve repeated activities or similar functions, suggesting potential duplication of roles. Additionally, 367 contracts have identical objectives but different values. One contract, with a duration of just two days, was valued at COP $2.839 million. Another contract had a value of zero and a duration extending until 2028. A total of 227 contracts, representing 28.1 percent of all annual contracting and totaling COP $21.137 billion, were signed on January 30, 2026, just one day before the Law of Guarantees came into effect. Furthermore, 101 contracts were signed over weekends, and 53.4 percent of annual contracting occurred in the weeks leading up to the law’s implementation. Ninety-nine percent of the contracts were awarded through direct contracting, meaning no selection processes took place. While this does not necessarily imply illegality, the high percentage of such contracts raised concerns. The ministry noted that additional observations were identified in 19 contracts totaling approximately COP $100.164 billion, which have been referred to the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic for review. The ministry emphasized that all findings are in the preliminary stage and will be investigated with due respect for the legal process and presumption of innocence. Cases deemed substantiated will be forwarded to the Attorney General's Office, the Office of the Comptroller General, and potentially the Prosecutor General's Office.