Mexican Secretariat of Health

Mexican Secretariat of Health
Name	Secretariat of Health
Native name	Secretaría de Salud
Formed	1917
Preceding1	Department of Hygiene
Jurisdiction	Mexico
Headquarters	Mexico City
Minister1 name	Rosa Icela Rodríguez (acting)
Minister1 pfo	Secretary of Health
Website	Secretaria de Salud

Contents

Mexican Secretariat of Health The Secretariat of Health is the federal executive department responsible for national health policy, public health administration, and health service regulation in Mexico City and the states of Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico (state), Michoacán, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatán, and Zacatecas. The Secretariat coordinates with institutions such as the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Instituto de Seguridad y Servicios Sociales de los Trabajadores del Estado, and Sistema Nacional para el Desarrollo Integral de la Familia to implement national health initiatives and regulatory frameworks.

History

The origins trace to public health agencies formed after the Mexican Revolution and legal reforms in the Constitution of Mexico (1917), evolving through interactions with international actors like the Pan American Health Organization, World Health Organization, and initiatives tied to the League of Nations health efforts. Twentieth-century milestones include campaigns against smallpox, polio, and tuberculosis influenced by specialists associated with Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán, Hospital General de México, and public figures such as Ignacio Chávez and Antonio González Ochoa. Reforms in the 1980s and 1990s intersected with policy shifts involving the Secretariat of Finance and Public Credit and structural changes mirrored in laws like the Health Law of Mexico (1983), and later programs connected to the Seguro Popular initiative tied to the administration of President Vicente Fox and President Felipe Calderón. The Secretariat’s role during crises has involved coordination with entities like the Cruz Roja Mexicana, Protección Civil, and military medical services of the Mexican Army.

The Secretariat’s internal organization comprises directorates analogous to those in other ministries, including the Federal Commission for Protection against Sanitary Risk, specialty institutes such as the Instituto Nacional de Psiquiatría Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz, research partnerships with the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, and liaison offices with the Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development and Secretariat of Welfare. Leadership derives from appointments by the President of Mexico and oversight involves the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. Regional health services coordinate with state-level ministries and municipal authorities, and interagency collaboration extends to the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources on issues like water quality, and the National Institute of Statistics and Geography for epidemiological data.

Statutory responsibilities include licensing and regulation enforced through agencies such as the Federal Commission for Protection against Sanitary Risk, oversight of hospitals like the Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez, and development of clinical guidelines in consultation with academic institutions including the Instituto Nacional de Medicina Genómica and Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del IPN. The Secretariat administers vaccination programs following recommendations from bodies such as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices-style panels, supervises pharmaceutical approvals in coordination with international regulators like the European Medicines Agency and the United States Food and Drug Administration, and implements maternal and child health initiatives influenced by programs from the United Nations Children's Fund and World Bank health financing instruments.

Major programs include national immunization drives against diseases like measles and diphtheria, chronic disease strategies targeting diabetes mellitus and hypertension developed with inputs from the International Diabetes Federation, nutritional campaigns addressing stunting linked to collaborations with the Food and Agriculture Organization, and mental health initiatives informed by the World Psychiatric Association. The Secretariat manages tuberculosis control aligned with the Stop TB Partnership and coordinates HIV/AIDS responses in partnership with the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS and civil society organizations such as Fundación Mexicana para la Salud.

The Secretariat plays a central role in epidemic responses—mobilizing surveillance with the National Epidemiological Surveillance System, laboratory networks including the Instituto de Diagnóstico y Referencia Epidemiológicos, and emergency medical brigades that coordinate with Cruz Roja Mexicana, Protección Civil, and the Secretariat of the Navy. During events such as the 2009 swine flu pandemic, operations integrated with the World Health Organization and regional public health partners like the Pan American Health Organization. Disaster response protocols intersect with the National Civil Protection System and military medical logistics of the Mexican Navy and Mexican Air Force.

Funding streams flow from allocations approved by the Congress of the Union (Mexico), transfers from the Secretariat of Finance and Public Credit, and cooperation funding from multilateral lenders such as the World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank. The Secretariat administers program budgets that interact with social security institutions including the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social and co-financing mechanisms with state governments, while procurement processes adhere to standards influenced by the World Health Organization procurement guidelines.

International engagement includes representation at the World Health Assembly, regulatory harmonization with agencies like the Pan American Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization, participation in global health security initiatives such as the Global Health Security Agenda, and bilateral cooperation with counterparts like the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Health Canada, and the Ministry of Health (Brazil). The Secretariat contributes to treaty negotiations on health issues within forums including the United Nations General Assembly and collaborates with non-governmental organizations such as Médecins Sans Frontières and Save the Children on humanitarian health interventions.

Category:Health ministries Category:Medical and health organizations based in Mexico