The ASF detects anomalies for 2 thousand 754.8 million pesos in pandemic management

In the attention to the pandemic in Mexico during 2020, the Superior Audit of the Federation (ASF) found possible damages to the public treasury for a total of 2 thousand 754.8 million pesos in the hiring of personnel and the acquisition of medical and protective equipment, medicines and vaccines by institutions such as the Health Institute for Welfare (Insabi), the IMSS, the ISSSTE and the Sedena.
This was revealed by the ASF itself in its report of the results of the audit of the Public Account 2020, in the section corresponding to the financial audits to the management of the health emergency by these different institutions.
In the Health Fund for Welfare, of the Insabi, the hiring of medical and paramedical personnel was analyzed, as well as the purchases of supplies (ventilators, gowns, tests, etc.). There it was observed that 650 ventilators, with a cost of 920.4 million pesos, were not delivered. 

This equipment had to have been supplied by 30 April 2020. Therefore, Insabi hired a firm to initiate legal actions to make effective the contractual responsibility of the supplier. 
In addition, this institute did not accredit the delivery of 1 million 50 thousand KN95 masks, with a cost of 40.5 million pesos, and clarification is pending regarding the payments made by one thousand 600.3 million pesos for the purchase of 2 thousand 250 ventilators, because it did not provide the supporting and proving documentation of its acquisition, reception and distribution to medical units. 

The @ASF_Mexico Surveillance Commission received the General Report of the Result of the Superior Audit of the Public Account 2020 and the Third Delivery of the Report of The Result of the Superior Audit of the Public Account 2020.https://t.co/w1QWZKfDJi
— Chamber of Deputies (@Mx_Diputados) February 20, 2022

Vaccine management
As part of its report, the ASF also presented results on the resources exercised by the National Center for Child and Adolescent Health (Censia), corresponding to advance payments for the acquisition of vaccines against COVID-19. 
In this regard, deficiencies were identified in the control and supervision of the processes of acquisition, reception, storage and distribution of vaccines, such as the fact that not all the information on the receipt of AstraZeneca doses in the national territory was available. 
For example, differences were found in the number of doses and the number of batches, when the information provided by Censia was compared with that of other participating entities. It was also determined that this center did not give the expected follow-up to the actions of transport and destination of the vaccines.
Regarding storage, differences were observed in the registration of the number of doses of the entries and exits in the warehouse of the National Cancer Institute, responsible for protecting those of the Pfizer brand. 
The Ministry of Health also had irregularities with the acquisition and management of biologics. In the resources of the Health Fund for Welfare exercised for the acquisition of vaccines, weaknesses were identified in the regulations that regulate operations related to acquisition, reception, storage, transfer and distribution. 
In the distribution of vaccines to the states, inconsistencies were observed in the information provided by 10 State Coordinators of the Special Brigade regarding the registration of batch entry.
In addition, the agency did not have complete information on the total number of vaccines received, and the information concentrated in its systems called “Environment of Administration and Management of Health Care” and “CVCovid” presented deficiencies.
Purchase of medicines and materials
In the acquisition of medicines from the IMSS, the purchases of drugs made at the central level and from the Administrative Operation Bodies (OOAD) of Aguascalientes, Mexico City, State of Mexico, Nuevo León, Puebla, San Luis Potosí and Sinaloa were reviewed, out of 15 contracts or orders for 464.5 million pesos, an amount that is equivalent to approximately 22% of what the institute reported as paid in drugs against COVID-19. 
Of these contracts or orders selected for the award of 11 drug keys, the IMSS did not provide all the documentation that must be integrated into the files, referring to contracting and payment. The institute also did not provide documentation of individual and collective prescriptions in the pharmacies of the OOAD of Nuevo León and Mexico City, so the distribution of the drugs could not be verified. 
In the purchases of hospital equipment made at the central level by the IMSS during 2020 – which included masks, surgical gownsCas, disposable coveralls, protective masks and gloves—, there were 11 contracts for an amount of 2 thousand 133.2 million pesos, it was observed that the receipt of goods for 4.8 million corresponding to an order and the lack of application of penalties for 11.7 million, derived from the delay in the delivery of masks, were not accredited. 
Nor was the difference of 8 million pesos determined between the amount reported as exercised by 22.1 million pesos and the payment to a supplier for 14.1 million pesos credited. 
In the resources disbursed by this institution for comprehensive services to install temporary medical units, as well as surrogate services – which included payment to hospitals and private clinics – irregularities were found in contracts for 25.9 million pesos. 
Read: ASF detects in Segalmex, Diconsa and Liconsa alleged corruption for 8 thousand 638 million pesos
Revision to ISSSTE and Sedena
In the case of issste, the procedures for the acquisition of medical equipment and hospital materials carried out at the central level by the Regulatory Directorates of Health and Administration and Finance, as well as by the State Delegation in the State of Mexico, were reviewed. 
What was found is that, for the acquisition of “adult pediatric-neonatal” ventilators, observations were issued for 86.6 million pesos for improper payments for foreign trade contributions. 
The National Medical Center 20 de Noviembre returned 15 ventilators to the central warehouse because they presented failures, without the supplier having been asked to replace them. The delegation in the State of Mexico failed to apply conventional penalties for the delay in the delivery of 47 pieces of equipment. In addition, this institute paid for 10 ventilators that had already been previously paid. 
It was also found that the ISSSTE did not correctly record some operations related to the donation of medicines received from Insabi, the delivery-reception minutes were not drawn up, nor were seven supply orders reconciled. In addition, the regional hospitals Centenario de la Revolución Mexicana and 1 de Octubre acquired medicines at unit prices higher than those paid by the central level and Insabi. 
In the reviews of the assignments in the hiring of medical and paramedical personnel to attend the health emergency, improper payments of 2.2 million pesos were found, for the hiring of personnel who did not cover the profile of the position. 
In the Sedena, a difference of 27.4 million pesos was determined between the figures contained in the databases of the payrolls of health personnel hired for the pandemic, against the amount reported as paid for that concept. 
On the other hand, it was identified that in the acquisition of eight equipment with a cost of 15.1 million pesos, the awarded company, after having installed five of the eight contracted units, notified that these were of different specifications and lower prices than established in the main contract. 
Sedena also authorized the conclusion of eight contracts to equip a hospital, without considering the time that would be used for its remodeling, which caused the goods to remain idle for between six and 10 months.
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Original source in Spanish

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