IMSS Founded — Social Security System Provides Healthcare to Millions

The Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS) was established under President Ávila Camacho on January 19, 1943, providing health insurance, maternity benefits, pensions, and disability coverage to formal sector workers. Today IMSS is the largest institution in Latin America by number of beneficiaries (over 70 million) and employs approximately 400,000 people. It runs 36 hospitals and 1,400+ clinics. The creation of IMSS represented Mexico's incorporation of workers into the welfare state and the PRI's social contract with urban labor.