Father Mateo Urges Lawmakers to Advance 10% Health Funding Bill

Father Mateo Bautista is urging Bolivian lawmakers to advance a bill that would dedicate at least 10% of the national budget to health care.

The priest met representatives of the Santa Cruz parliamentary brigade on Monday to discuss the condition of the health system and renew support for the proposal. He said the initiative, first presented in 2015, should treat health spending as an investment rather than a cost.

“I reminded them that we had presented the bill in 2015 and insisted that health is not an expense, but an investment. Investing in health is progress because health brings education and work,” Father Mateo said.

The bill has already passed the Senate by an absolute majority during the previous legislative session. It must now be introduced and debated in the Chamber of Deputies, with lawmakers expressing support for the initiative.

The proposed allocation would cover the national, departmental and municipal levels of government. Its stated aims include strengthening hospital infrastructure, improving medical equipment, ensuring staff availability, and supporting prevention, treatment and rehabilitation across Bolivia’s public health system.

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I reminded them that we had presented the bill in 2015 and insisted that health is not an expense, but an investment. Investing in health is progress because health brings education and work