Historic investment by IMSS-Wellbeing transforms health in Quintana Roo

The IMSS-Bienestar announces a million-dollar investment to expand the Kumate hospital in Cancún and rescue an old hospital.

Publicado 20 marzo, 2026 el 20 de marzo a las 19:21 | 2 mins reading |2,947 vistas | por Carlos Méndez

A high-impact move on the public health board

Alejandro Svarch, the director of IMSS-Bienestar, did not come to Quintana Roo just to cut ribbons. He came to move pieces on a board where the debt to the people is enormous. And his announcement has the weight of a promise that seeks to change the game.

In Cancún, the bet is strong: more than 400 million pesos to build a new specialty tower at the Kumate hospital. It’s not just cement and steel. Svarch painted it as an act of justice.

“With this work we are not only going to expand the state’s flagship public hospital, but we are paying off a historical debt of the people of Quintana Roo: bringing high specialty services closer to the population.”

We are talking about 26 new specialties that, in theory, will no longer be a distant trip for many families. It is the kind of movement that, if executed well, can rewrite the rules of access to health in the area.

The second card up your sleeve: rescuing what has been abandoned

But the play doesn’t stop there. The other part of the plan is as intelligent as it is necessary: rescuing an old general hospital that was out of business. They will transform it into a maternal and child hospital, with an even greater investment: 533 million pesos.

Svarch highlighted the social double whammy here. On the one hand, it provides more and better care to mothers and children with a “more dignified, close and humane” model. On the other hand, it recovers a public space that was lost and returns it to the community. It’s winning twice with a single play.

And of course, Chetumal and Carrillo Puerto are also on the radar, with advances and expansion of specialized medicine.

In the end, this deployment in Quintana Roo seems like a direct response to an old demand. The speech of “paying off a historic debt” sounds good. But we know that in this political theater, the applause only comes when the curtain closes and the play works. Investment is on the table. Now it’s time to see if the show lives up to what was announced.

National

FDA recognizes false positive in Taylor Farms lettuce

Cofepris analysis rules out contamination; FDA admits error in initial sample.

Publicado 5 hours ago el 23 de julio a las 22:34 | 1 min reading

Analysis results

The Ministry of Health reported that tests carried out on lettuce and water samples from the Taylor Farms Mexico plant were negative for the parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis —which causes severe diarrhea— and also for fecal coliforms. The analyses, carried out by Cofepris, confirmed that the product complies with the physicochemical parameters established in national standards.

Traceability and false positive

Taylor Farms has a traceability system that allowed United States authorities to identify the origin of the product and track a batch held at customs in Laredo, Texas. That batch never entered US territory.

The sample obtained from that batch returned a false positive, a situation that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recognized in an update published on July 19. The Ministry of Health emphasized that the product is suitable for human consumption.

National

UIF identifies 55 people in the CJNG financial network

The FIU detected 55 people linked to a CJNG financial network, including 16 front companies.

Publicado 6 hours ago el 23 de julio a las 21:08 | 2 mins reading

The Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) of Mexico detected 55 people allegedly linked to a financial network of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). The finding was achieved through specific financial indicators, as reported by the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP).

Release 61 details that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the United States Department of the Treasury designated 55 people – 39 individuals and 16 legal entities – related to this structure. The action is part of bilateral cooperation against the finances of organized crime.

Indicators detected

The FIU identified “indicators related to possible operations with resources of illicit origin.” Among them: cash operations, acquisition of high-end vehicles, jewelry and real estate, international transfers, intensive use of credit and service cards, and inconsistencies in income reported to the SAT.

The authorities detected “possible inconsistencies between the income reported to the tax authority and the resources observed in the financial system,” which strengthened the identification of the network.

Front companies and complaints

Of the total, 16 legal entities had illegal activities. According to the FIU, some registered relevant operations, while others were front companies with “limited or no apparent economic activity.”

The UIF filed a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office (FGR) for the crime of operations with resources of illicit origin. It also included the subjects designated by OFAC on the List of Blocked Persons (LPB), and added eight additional ones—four individuals and four legal entities—linked to the same financial structure.

International coordination

The Treasury stressed that the coordinated actions with the United States seek to “prevent improper use of the financial system, combat money laundering and weaken the economic structures of organized crime.” The FIU maintains cooperation with national and international authorities, in accordance with the standards of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

National

US Treasury locates Florence as a drug production center

The Treasury Department identified the Zacatecas municipality as the CJNG base for fentanyl and cocaine.

Publicado 7 hours ago el 23 de julio a las 20:44 | 2 mins reading

The United States Department of the Treasury identified Florencia de Benito Juárez, Zacatecas, as one of the key points of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) to manufacture fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine.

According to the agency, José Octaviano García Martínez is the current head of the plaza in the area, accompanied by Cuauhtémoc Rivera Zepeda and Uriel Hernández Morales. These last two would be in charge of the clandestine laboratories in Zacatecas and Jalisco. All three report to Audias Flores Silva—alias El Jardinero—, designated as successor to the late leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, El Mencho.

Criminal presence in a small municipality

Florencia de Benito Juárez barely covers 328 square kilometers in the south of the state, in the Sierra Madre Occidental, adjacent to Jalisco. Despite its size, the municipality has been the scene of organized crime operations.

In March 2025, authorities dismantled a camp used by a criminal cell. Months later, in June, they destroyed a greenhouse used for growing marijuana. Both operations sought to neutralize illegal infrastructure.

The municipal president elected in 2024 is Fortino Cortés Ramírez, who will conclude his term in 2027.

Recent violence and federal response

On Saturday, July 18, 2025, 10 bodies were found in the municipalities of Morelos, Pánuco and Sain Alto. Of the victims, six were construction, mining and entertainment businessmen. Two others were officials of the Fresnillo city council: Fidel Alvarado de la Torre, secretary of Municipal Social Development, and firefighter Jesús Gerardo Muñetón Hernández.

Given these events, the Secretariat of National Defense deployed 100 Special Forces elements on July 22. They joined the 400 Army and National Guard troops who had already been operating since July 19. They carry out ground reconnaissance and deterrent actions in Zacatecas, Guadalupe and Fresnillo.

The conflict in the region is not new. On May 20, 2011, a clash between rival groups—known as The Florence War—left 77 people dead. The journalist Alfredo Valadez Rodríguez documented this episode in the book of the same name, published by Ediciones Proceso in 2021.