Sheinbaum Announces Sistema Universal de Salud Decree: Universal Healthcare Access Across All Public Systems

President Sheinbaum announced at her April 7 mañanera that she would imminently sign a presidential decree establishing the Sistema Universal de Salud — a mechanism allowing any Mexican citizen to receive care at any of the three public health systems (IMSS, ISSSTE, or IMSS-Bienestar) regardless of which system they formally belong to. The decree was designed to eliminate the fragmentation of Mexico's public health infrastructure, where patients were historically turned away at facilities belonging to a system other than their own. Registration for adults over 85 years of age was set to begin April 13–30. The announcement represented a flagship health governance achievement of Sheinbaum's presidency, going beyond what the AMLO administration had achieved in integrating the previously fragmented Seguro Popular successor system. The measure was expected to benefit tens of millions of Mexicans with limited access to their formally registered institution.