Rosario Murillo ordered the intervention of the Carlos Roberto Huembes Teaching Hospital, took control of the medical center away from the National Police, and steered its administration toward Specialized Medical Services, a company linked to the Nicaraguan Institute of Social Security. The measure removes the uniformed institution from managing its officers' contributions and reaches a structure that concentrated contracts, preferential services, and extra pay.
The hospital operated for years with monthly contributions from thousands of officers and administrative employees from across the country. Those funds injected millions of córdobas into the police budget, in addition to income from consultations and procedures, according to Nicaragua Investiga.
The administration of the police health insurance will pass to Specialized Medical Services, known as SERMESA and managed by the Nicaraguan Institute of Social Security. The transfer leaves the rank-and-file's contributions under the INSS structure, instead of the commissioners' internal management.
The fall of the police medical directorate
The Attorney General's Office carried out the operation after an audit that alleged misappropriation of funds and "unauthorized corruption." The intervention resulted in the removal of the hospital's board of directors.
Among those detained under house arrest is General Commissioner Julio César Paladino, director of the center and personal physician of Daniel Orte…
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The monthly contributions of thousands of police agents and employees injected millions of córdobas into the budget of the medical center. (Photo courtesy of Nicaraguan state channels)
Rosario Murillo ordered the intervention of the Carlos Roberto Huembes Teaching Hospital, removed the National Police's control over its medical center, and steered its administration toward Servicios Médicos Especializados, a company linked to the Nicaraguan Institute of Social Security. The measure removes the uniformed institution from the management of its agents' contributions and affects a structure that concentrated contracts, preferential services, and extra pay. The hospital operated for years with monthly contributions from thousands of officers and administrative employees from across the country. Those funds injected millions of córdobas into the police budget, in addition to income from consultations and procedures, according to Nicaragua Investiga.
The administration of the police health insurance will pass to Servicios Médicos Especializados, known as SERMESA and managed by the Nicaraguan Institute of Social Security. The transfer leaves the troops' contributions under the INSS structure, rather than the internal management of the commissioners.
The Attorney General's Office carried out the operation after an audit alleged misappropriation of funds and "unauthorized corruption." The intervention resulted in the removal of the hospital's board of directors.
Rosario Murillo ordered the intervention of the Carlos Roberto Huembes Teaching Hospital and removed its control from the National Police. (Courtesy image)
Among those detained under house arrest is general commissioner Julio César Paladino, director of the center, personal physician of Daniel Ortega, and university rector. Also affected were the deputy financial director, major commissioner Jorge Rivas Castillo, and the head of nursing, commissioner Aracely Solís.
Paladino was in charge of Ortega's exclusive health care. His detention reaches an official who combined medical, police, and academic responsibilities within the state structure.
The hospital maintained its own financial position within the National Police. In addition to administering its members' contributions, it concentrated the contracting of medical services and a benefits scheme for members of the institution.
The Carlos Roberto Huembes Hospital had been formally attached to the Ministry of the Interior in March 2020, a decision aimed at circumventing United States sanctions against the National Police. Despite that administrative change, the commissioners who are now detained maintained operational and economic control of the center.
The intervention by the Attorney General's Office displaces the police leadership from one of its main spaces for managing resources. The entity, under Murillo's command, assumes a central role in taking control of institutions, mayoralties, and funds administered by state bodies.
The SERMESA company will assume the administration of police health contributions under the purview of the Nicaraguan Institute of Social Security. (Photo courtesy of Nicaraguan state channels)
The transfer to SERMESA affects the handling of a benefit that the police leadership considered exclusive. The agents' contributions will be under INSS administration, while the National Police loses direct control over its most profitable health project.
SERMESA belongs to the Nicaraguan Institute of Social Security (INSS), which owns 100% of the company. Although it is legally incorporated as a corporation, the institute's executive president, Roberto López, confirmed that the state entity is its sole owner. The INSS created the company to acquire private clinics and hospitals that later passed into state hands. Among the purchases are the former Hospital Central Managua, the Hospital Cruz Azul, the Clínica Su Médico, the Hospital La Fraternidad, and Polimesa.
SERMESA operates with separate accounting and is administered as a private company. The institute itself awards it contracts to serve its insured members, while the company also offers medical services to private individuals and insurance companies.