For the second time, the Seventh Commission of the Senate sank the health reform promoted by the Government of President Gustavo Petro.

The decision was made this Tuesday, December 16, on the last day of sessions of the year, after a vote that revealed the lack of majorities of the Executive in Congress.

With eight votes in favor of archiving and five against, the legislative cell approved the presentation that asked to archive the project, as had already happened in April 2024. The discussion took place in the middle of an eventful session, marked by technical difficulties and strong political tensions between the ruling party and the opposition.

Of the 14 members of the Seventh Commission, Senator Ana Paola Agudelo, from the MIRA party, was marginalized from the discussion. The final vote represented one of the most resounding legislative defeats for the Petro Government in recent months, especially since it was one of its flagship reforms.

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The fall of the reform occurs in the midst of a financial crisis in the health system, which has impacted the care of millions of patients in the country.

Minutes before the vote, the Minister of the Interior, Armando Benedetti, launched harsh criticism against the Seventh Commission, ensuring that there were maneuvers to prevent the initiative from being revived in plenary.

“They waited until the last day to sink the health reform and thus not be able to revive it in plenary as we did with the labor reform. They have played with the health of Colombians in a filthy and cheap way”the official wrote in his X account.

After the sinking, senators Fabián Díaz Plata and Wilson Arias announced that they will appeal the decision so that the project is sent to the plenary session of the Senate.

The appeal will be discussed at the beginning of the next legislative year, although the political panorama anticipates a new fight between the Government and Congress, in a scenario where the Executive has had difficulties in consolidating stable majorities.

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