International
The Keralty group announces that it can take action to recover the administration of Sanitas in Colombia
The group of Spanish origin Keralty, owner of the health provider (EPS) Sanitas, intervened on Tuesday by the Colombian Government, announced on Thursday that it is weighing the actions to be taken to recover the administration of the company because it considers the measure “arbitrary” and “illegal”.
“We strongly and forcefully reject the arbitrary intervention of our EPS because it is improvised, illegal, disproportionate and discriminatory,” Keralty says in a statement.
The group recalls that Sanitas has investments that support its technical reserves “for a value of more than 800 billion pesos” (about 193 million euros).
“We are analyzing the actions to be taken to stop the arbitrariness of the act of intervention, recovering the administration of EPS Sanitas for the benefit of our affiliates, collaborators and the country,” Keralty says in the statement.
The intervention for a period of one year was announced by the Superintendence of Health alleging the alleged insolvency of Sanitas, which has 5.8 million members in Colombia, and debts of more than two billion pesos (483 million euros today). But Keralty assures that the financial sustainability situation of the EPS is caused “largely by the same Government.”
That’s because it does not do “responsible analyses on issues such as the insufficiency of the UPC (Captation Payment Unit),” which is the annual value that is recognized by each of the members of the general security system, “the concentration of risk per member and the non-recognition of the accumulated debt.”
According to Keralty, those problems were alerted “opportunely” and in multiple scenarios to the Ministry of Health and other institutions, “without finding solutions,” and adds that last December Sanitas herself presented to the Superintendence of Health “an institutional reorganization plan on which there was no decision.”
As for the complaints about the service provided to users that the Government argues, Keralty assures that this indicator is “similar to the average of the sector” and not higher than the national average, as stated by the Superintendence of Health.
Keralty was born as a Sanitas International Organization 50 years ago in Spain, focusing its activity on the health sector and also has operations in Colombia, the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, the Philippines, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.
The statement adds that the intervention in Sanitas “may compromise the provision of the service to our 5.8 million affiliates and drastically changes the rules of the game for companies that bet on the country.”
In addition to Sanitas, the Colombian Government intervened on Wednesday by the New EPS, the largest company in the sector in the country, which has 10.9 million members.
These interventions have received harsh criticism from some sectors, which consider them an attempt by the Government to forcibly impose its health reform, after the bill presented to Congress definitively collapsed yesterday in the Seventh Committee of the Senate.
“What the same Congress is telling us is that the EPS are broken, now it’s up to us to solve it; what could be a quiet, orderly, trouble-free agreement, to make the transition, now it’s all at once,” Colombian President Gustavo Petro said last night about the changes he seeks to make in the health sector.
International
Colombia Earthquake Leaves at Least 22 Dead as Rescue Efforts Continue
At least 22 people were killed and dozens more were affected by a magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck Colombia on Monday, with the epicenter located near the municipality of San José del Palmar in the northwestern department of Chocó, authorities reported in a preliminary assessment.
The city of Pereira has so far recorded the highest number of fatalities. Mayor Mauricio Salazar told local media that 18 people had died in the city and warned that a large number of buildings had been damaged.
“The situation is critical, and we are moving forward with assessments while assisting people who remain trapped,” Salazar said.
Authorities in Manizales reported two additional deaths, while two more fatalities were confirmed in the department of Valle del Cauca. Several people were also injured, and structural damage was reported in different communities.
“We are just beginning to establish radio communication with the hospitals. We know that we have three injured people in El Cairo, two deaths in Zarzal, the collapse of an academic structure in Calima Darién, and minor structural damage in Cali,” said María Cristina Lesmes, Valle del Cauca’s health secretary.
Emergency teams were continuing rescue and assessment operations as authorities worked to determine the full extent of the damage and update the number of casualties.
International
Record 230 Migrants Cross English Channel to UK in Single Boat
A record 230 migrants crossed the English Channel overnight Sunday aboard a small inflatable boat bound for the United Kingdom, according to French maritime rescue services and British media, highlighting the growing number of people being packed onto vessels attempting the dangerous crossing.
More than 20 children were among those aboard the inflatable boat when it departed from the northeastern French coast on Sunday night amid chaotic scenes, France’s maritime rescue service SNSM said in an online statement.
The figure surpasses the previous record for the number of people aboard a single boat, set last month when 165 migrants successfully crossed the busy maritime route.
The latest incident comes just days after an inflatable boat carrying more than 150 people capsized in the Channel after its engine caught fire, triggering a major search-and-rescue operation.
Britain’s Home Office did not confirm the exact number of people aboard Sunday’s vessel but condemned what it described as the “reckless and dangerous tactics” used by criminal gangs facilitating the crossings.
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Andy Burnham described images of the operation as “shocking,” particularly those showing very young children being placed aboard boats that were not suitable for the journey.
The United Kingdom has spent years attempting to curb these dangerous and politically sensitive Channel crossings. Tens of thousands of migrants have reached the southeastern English coast annually in recent years, keeping the issue at the center of the country’s immigration debate.
International
Joe Biden’s Prostate Cancer Has Spread to His Bones, Son Hunter Reveals
Former U.S. President Joe Biden’s prostate cancer has worsened and spread to his bones and other parts of his body, his son Hunter Biden revealed in a recent interview with the BBC.
Biden disclosed in May 2025, just four months after leaving office as the oldest sitting U.S. president in history, that he had been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that had already spread to his bones.
The former president subsequently began treatment, including radiation and hormone therapy. In July, while announcing the publication of his memoirs, Biden said the treatment was going “really well.”
However, in an extensive interview broadcast Friday night on the BBC’s Newsnight, Hunter Biden said his father’s condition had progressed despite treatment.
“The cancer has spread and metastasized to his bones and other places,” Hunter Biden said.
He added that the illness has been “very painful” and, in many ways, “very debilitating,” but said his father continues to remain active.
“He’s still out there. He’s still doing his thing,” Hunter Biden said, emphasizing that his father remains deeply committed to the United States.
The former president’s diagnosis has remained a subject of public attention since it was first announced, particularly because of his age and his decision to continue a public life after leaving the White House.
Colombia Earthquake Leaves at Least 22 Dead as Rescue Efforts Continue
Record 230 Migrants Cross English Channel to UK in Single Boat
Joe Biden’s Prostate Cancer Has Spread to His Bones, Son Hunter Reveals
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