San Nicolás is set to become the first city in Argentina to implement health vouchers. The Ministry of Health of the Nation confirmed on Monday through X (formerly Twitter) that the city of San Nicolás will start implementing the health voucher system, making it the first locality in the Argentine territory to do so.
The statement released in the last few hours stated that the public-private health center GO Sanatorio San Nicolás will be the first to implement the so-called “Municipal Medical Insurance.” National Health Minister Mario Russo, Presidential General Secretary Karina Milei, and House Speaker Martín Menem were touring the center on Monday.
The visit also included the medical director of the sanatorium, Marisa Vico; the director of Grupo Oroño, Roberto Villavicencio; the former mayor of the town, Manuel Pasagglia; municipal authorities, and medical staff from the institution.
San Nicolás is thus the first place in Argentina to implement this system, which will reach 50,000 residents who do not have health insurance or prepaid medicine, representing 30% of the local population.
How do health vouchers work in San Nicolás?
According to the statement, the Municipal Medical Insurance “is implemented through a digital credential, using the user’s ID as the affiliate number, which allows for control of care to prevent fraud.” Furthermore, it continues: “The digital credential works with a token, like all health insurance, through the municipality’s website. Through this system, the municipality will only pay for the medical services that the resident receives, corresponding to primary health care, the level that corresponds to municipalities.” With this measure, the municipality will subsidize “demand and not supply,” as mentioned by President Javier Milei on several occasions.
The Ministry of Health, San Nicolás, and Karina Milei are all involved in this groundbreaking initiative.