Executive Decree PCM-007-2026 through which the State of Emergency is declared in the Illness and Maternity Regime of the Honduran Institute of Social Security (IHSS)
Congreso Nacional
- Decree: PCM-007-2026
- Published: March 27, 2026
- Issuing body: Congreso Nacional
- Gazette: 37,105
- Category: Health
Summary
This decree declares a State of Emergency in the Honduran Social Security Institute (IHSS) for one year to address the crisis of medicines, medical equipment, and surgical delays. It authorizes the IHSS to directly contract health services, purchase medicines and supplies, and hire specialized staff quickly, without following normal public procurement procedures, to ensure immediate medical care for the insured population.
Considerations
Whereas Article 59 of the Constitution of the Republic establishes that the human person is the supreme end of Society and the State. Everyone has the obligation to respect and protect it. The dignity of the human being is inviolable.
Whereas Articles 142, 143, and 145 of the Constitution of the Republic establish that Social Security services shall be provided and administered by the Honduran Institute of Social Security (IHSS), which shall cover cases of illness, maternity, and other contingencies that affect the capacity to produce; that the State, employers, and workers shall be obliged to contribute to the financing, improvement, and expansion of Social Insurance; and, it recognizes the right to health protection and establishes that it is the duty of all to participate in the promotion and preservation of personal and community health, respectively.
Whereas in accordance with Article 245, Numerals 2 and 11 of the Constitution of the Republic, it corresponds to the President of the Republic, among other attributions, to direct the general policy of the State and represent it, issue agreements and decrees, and issue regulations and resolutions in accordance with the Law.
Whereas in accordance with Article 252 of the Constitution of the Republic, the President of the Republic convenes and presides over the Council of State Secretaries, which shall meet to take resolution on all matters that it deems of national importance.
Whereas the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognizes the right of every person to the enjoyment of the highest possible level of physical and mental health. Among the measures that State parties shall adopt is the creation of conditions that ensure all persons medical assistance and services in case of illness.
Whereas the General Law of Public Administration provides that the President of the Republic has charge of the supreme direction and coordination of the Centralized and Decentralized Public Administration, and may, in the exercise of his functions, act by himself or in the Council of State Secretaries. Likewise, it is established that the President of the Republic has charge of the General Administration of the State and its representation; having among his attributions the administration of the Public Treasury and the other powers conferred upon him by the Constitution and the laws.
Whereas in accordance with Article 8 of the Social Security Law, the administration of Social Insurance is under the charge of the Honduran Institute of Social Security (IHSS), a decentralized institution with legal personality and its own patrimony, with jurisdiction throughout the national territory.
Whereas the Illness and Maternity Regime of the IHSS is experiencing a critical structural and operational situation characterized by the saturation of healthcare facilities, accumulated surgical backlog, chronic deficit of medical supplies, medications and hospital equipment, insufficiency of specialized health personnel, deterioration of infrastructure, and logistical limitations that compromise the timely and quality provision of health services to the insured population.
Whereas the persistence of these precarious conditions represents a real and imminent threat to the human right to health and life of the insured population, making it legally appropriate, technically and socially necessary to declare a State of Emergency in the IHSS as an exceptional, temporary, and proportional mechanism to restore the operational capacity of the Illness and Maternity Regime, guarantee the continuity of services, and protect national health security.
Whereas the measures to be adopted shall be governed by the principles of legality, necessity, proportionality, temporality, transparency, publicity, accountability, and unrestricted respect for human rights, seeking the most advantageous conditions in price and quality.
Whereas the State Contracting Law (Articles 9 and 63, Numeral 1) authorizes the Executive Branch to declare a State of Emergency by Decree of the Council of State Secretaries and authorizes direct contracting when it is a matter of providing for needs occasioned by emergency situations that affect the continuity or efficient provision of essential public services, without prejudice to subsequent oversight.
Whereas the Board of Directors of the IHSS instructed its president, at a session held on March 12, 2026, to present before the Presidency of the Republic, the request for the declaration of a State of Emergency due to the shortage of medications and surgical medical material in the institution's central warehouse, the high surgical backlog, and the lack of provision of essential services in various parts of the country, since, without the necessary medical service supplies, timely and quality assistance cannot be provided to the beneficiaries, and in compliance with that instruction, the President of the Board of Directors of the IHSS requested from the Presidency of the Republic the declaration of a State of Emergency, through OFFICIAL-SETRASS-0123-2026 dated March 16, 2026.
Whereas the Executive Branch is exercised in representation and for the benefit of the people by the President of the Republic, who may act by himself or in the Council of State Secretaries.
Whereas the acts of the organs of the Public Administration shall take the form of Decrees, Agreements, Resolutions, or Providences, and decisions of a particular nature that are made outside of proceedings in which private parties intervene as interested parties shall be issued by Agreement.
Whereas it corresponds to the General Prosecutor of the Republic the Legal Representation of the State, in all acts or contracts in which the Nation is interested.
Whereas the General Prosecutor of the Republic, within the framework of the fulfillment of his attributions, has the duty to promote, represent, and uphold the rights of the State in all lawsuits in which it is a party. In these cases he shall have the powers of a General Attorney, but shall require express authorization from the Executive Branch, granted by Agreement in each case to exercise the powers designated in Numeral 2 of Article 81 and Numeral 2 of Article 82 of the Civil Procedural Code; as provided in Article 19, Numeral 1 of his Organic Law.
Articles
Declare a STATE OF EMERGENCY in the Illness and Maternity Regime of the Honduran Social Security Institute (IHSS), at the national level, for a period of one (1) calendar year counted from the day following the date of this Executive Decree, with the purpose of addressing the structural and operational crisis affecting the provision of health services to the insured population, reducing surgical backlog, guaranteeing timely supply of medications and supplies, hospital equipment, hiring of specialized personnel, and timely management of outsourced services for which the IHSS has obligations. The declaration is adopted as an exceptional, temporary, necessary, and proportional measure, aimed at protecting the right to health and the life of the insured population.
By virtue of this State of Emergency, the Executive Director of the IHSS, with supervision and accompaniment of the Board of Directors of the IHSS, is authorized to:
- a)
Subscribe directly and immediately agreements and contracts with public or private health service provider institutions, governmental and non-governmental organizations, national or international cooperating entities, or national or foreign companies that operate legally in the country, for the provision of medical services that include the performance of necessary surgical procedures, acquisition of medications, supplies, equipment, infrastructure, computer systems, administrative support systems, supplies in general, acquisition of movable and immovable property, contract for the construction and/or remodeling of infrastructure to provide hospital services and peripheral clinics, execution of works, leases, and provision of essential services (Including laboratory, hemodialysis, hemodynamics, oncology services, food for hospitalized patients, maintenance, cleaning, security, computer services, transportation, among others) that are necessary to face the emergency in all regions of the country where the IHSS must provide services to the insured population;
- b)
Regularize directly and immediately the provision of services in order to guarantee timely payment to providers currently providing services of: laboratory, hemodialysis, blood derivatives, hemodynamics, outsourced medical services at all levels, oncology services, equipment and vehicle maintenance, cleaning, sanitation and fumigation, security, water, transportation, insurance, computer services, technology and agreements, among others;
- c)
Contract necessary health and administrative personnel to address the deficit in care and accumulated backlog; and,
- d)
Contract for the construction and/or remodeling of its own infrastructure to provide hospital services and peripheral clinics, with the objective of decentralizing care at the Tegucigalpa Hospital of Specialties and the Northern Regional Hospital in San Pedro Sula, being able to even acquire immovable property necessary to supplement and extend care in these same facilities.
As the Executive Branch was authorized by Article 9 of Legislative Decree Number 5-2026, published on February 6, 2026 in the Official Gazette "La Gaceta", which contains the Law of Exceptional Measures for Priority Attention in Matters of Public Health, and by virtue of this State of Emergency, the Executive Director of the IHSS, with supervision and accompaniment of the Board of Directors of the IHSS, is authorized to adhere to or join, with separate administration and accounts, the Trust structured and subscribed by the Secretary of State in the Office of Health with a bank of the national system, subscribing to the corresponding contract or adhesion or incorporation document, in order to expedite the care of surgical backlog, purchase of medications and equipment, their respective dispensing, equipping of hospitals and peripheral clinics, corresponding insurance and maintenance, the construction and/or remodeling of infrastructure to provide hospital services and peripheral clinics, as well as any other technical, operational, or other requirement. In the interest of transparency and legality, this trust must have in all its contracting and execution processes all corresponding internal and external audits.
Special and Simplified Direct Contracting Guidelines. The Executive Director of the IHSS, with supervision and accompaniment of the Board of Directors of the IHSS, shall apply the following exceptional and simplified procedure: 1. Instruction and Requirement. The Executive Director of the IHSS issues written directive for the beginning of the procedure in accordance with the request from the corresponding unit (With participation of the National Medical Directorate when applicable) that prepares the abbreviated technical requirement and justification of urgency before the Executive Director of the IHSS. 2. Abbreviated Terms of Reference or specifications sheet with reduced timeframes are elaborated. 3. Invitation and Reception. Qualified providers (National or International) are directly invited. Quotations are received by electronic means or sealed envelope. The Executive Director of the IHSS immediately appoints an odd Evaluation Committee (obligatorily integrated by a technician from the National Medical Directorate in clinical processes, the composition and appointment shall be made in accordance with the State Contracting Law). 4. Evaluation, Adjudication and Formalization:
- •
Receipt of bids shall be made in accordance with what is determined in the specifications or in the terms of reference. Opening of the bids shall be done publicly and the corresponding record shall be issued by the Evaluation Committee designated for such purpose.
- •
The Evaluation Committee issues technical-economic recommendation report within a maximum period of 48 hours.
- •
The Executive Director of the IHSS adjudicates the most advantageous bid for the IHSS in relation to what is provided in the specifications or to the lowest bid if the specifications do not establish a different criterion. The Executive Director of the IHSS shall subscribe to the corresponding contract.
- •
The contract or agreement is formalized and subscribed within a maximum period of ten (10) business days after the adjudication.
All contracts and agreements subscribed under this Executive Decree shall:
- •
Be published in the IHSS Transparency Portal and in the Honducompras Portal within forty-eight (48) hours following their signature, indicating total amount, provider, and purpose.
- •
Be sent, within a period of ten (10) business days, to the Superior Audit Court (TSC) for audit purposes.
- •
Be executed seeking the most advantageous conditions in relation to price and quality, subject to the approval and control processes provided in the Constitution and the laws.
It is strictly prohibited to use the mechanisms of this Executive Decree for acquisitions or contracting outside the Illness and Maternity Regime or not directly related to the response to the emergency.
This Executive Decree and STATE OF EMERGENCY encompasses and protects the execution, continuity, and conclusion of all projects, contracts, agreements, and other acts subscribed or initiated during its validity.
The Secretary of State in the Office of Finance (SEFIN) is instructed to, within the framework of its competence, timely attend to requests for budgetary modifications and adjustments submitted by the IHSS and to timely enable the necessary resources for the fulfillment of the measures established herein.
The Executive Director of the IHSS shall submit a quarterly report to the Board of Directors of the IHSS and the same shall forward it to the Presidency of the Republic, regarding the execution of this Executive Decree, including the number of surgeries performed, reduction of surgical backlog, supply status by hospital, average waiting time and patients treated, among other relevant matters. A copy of the Report shall be sent to the Superior Audit Court and shall be published in the IHSS Transparency Portal.
Everything not provided for or that which requires clarification, more specification or detail, or an expansion of criteria or guidelines, at the request of the Executive Director of the IHSS, shall be approved by the Board of Directors of the IHSS, with delegation granted for such purpose to ensure strict compliance with what is provided in this article.
This Executive Decree is of immediate execution and shall be published in the Official Gazette "La Gaceta". Given in the City of Tegucigalpa, Municipality of the Central District, on the twenty-sixth (26) day of the month of March of the year two thousand twenty-six (2026). COMMUNICATE AND PUBLISH. NASRY JUAN ASFURA ZABLAH PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC JUAN CARLOS GARCÍA MEDINA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENCY EMILIO ENRIQUE HERNÁNDEZ HÉRCULES SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF FINANCE SULMY YAMILETH ORTÉZ MALDONADO SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICES OF GOVERNANCE, JUSTICE AND DECENTRALIZATION, BY LAW PAMELA HANDAL RIVERA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF FOREIGN RELATIONS, BY LAW EDDY JOHANS ORDOÑEZ RUBI SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT NOLVIA PATRICIA HERRERA ESPINOZA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF WOMEN'S AFFAIRS GERZON ONÁN VELÁSQUEZ AGUILERA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF SECURITY JUSTO RAFAEL CANO MARTÍNEZ SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF DEFENSE, BY LAW ANGEL EDUARDO MIDENCE OCHOA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF HEALTH, BY LAW JUAN CARLOS RAMOS RAMÍREZ SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICES OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT IVETTE ARELY ARGUETA PADILLA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF EDUCATION MOISES ABRAHAM MOLINA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICES OF AGRICULTURE AND LIVESTOCK EDUARDO OVIEDO GARCÍA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF ENERGY ANIBAL ALBERTO EHRLER MARTÍNEZ SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICES OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND TRANSPORTATION FERNANDO PUERTO CASTRO SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF LABOR AND SOCIAL SECURITY ANDRÉS DE JESÚS EHRLER MARTÍNEZ SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICE OF TOURISM REINALDO ANTONIO SANCHEZ RIVERA SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICES OF RISK MANAGEMENT AND NATIONAL CONTINGENCIES JOSSELYNE PALACIOS SECRETARY OF STATE IN THE OFFICES OF HOUSING AND HUMAN SETTLEMENTS, BY LAW
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