This report highlights the important advances in the process for enrollment of regularized Venezuelan migrants into the General System of Social Health Insurance, the government health insurance system in Colombia. 

This Spanish-language report considers the impact that a policy to empower Colombian citizens and organizations to participate in decision-making for the country’s health system.

This short document provides an English-language summary of the key findings and recommendations of the LHSS Colombia Activity’s full, Spanish-language report “Recommendations on Strengthening the PAIWEB Information System, Focused on Migrants.”

LHSS Colombia Activity presents findings from an LHSS assessment of the PAIWEB information system and provides recommendations for strengthening the system.

Meet Jessica. Her little girl is one of more than 40,000 migrants who have been enrolled in Colombia’s national health insurance system with support from the LHSS Project.

For countries facing a large influx of migrants, the best way to ensure that these new members of society have sustained access to essential health services is to have a long-term strategy – one that builds on existing health platforms.

Population movement of this magnitude places huge stress on health systems in receptor countries. How can health care for migrants be financed? How can health system capacity be expanded? And how can health sector policies and national migration policies be harmonized? 

The pandemic has presented an urgent challenge to Colombia’s already overburdened, understaffed health system. Rapid response teams are traversing roads, mountain paths, and rivers to help health officials contain the spread of COVID-19. 

LHSS supports scale up and adaptation of existing vaccination programs for COVID-19 while also strengthening countries’ capacity to manage other public health efforts in the future.