The Liberal candidate Luis Fretes compared a potential victory for the ruling party's candidate Camilo Pérez in the Asunción mayoralty to the historic sacking of the city during the War of the Triple Alliance.
Isaías Fretes
Pytagua coverage mentioning Isaías Fretes.
The new management of Paraguay's social security institute has found 67 inherited criminal cases, including high-impact investigations and delays of up to a decade, and plans to speed up investigations to recover funds.
IPS President Isaías Fretes discovered hospital equipment valued at $20 million abandoned and unused at the Central Hospital, prompting the opening of audits and the possibility of reports to the Public Ministry for alleged damage to public property.
Nurses leave Paraguay's social security institute IPS due to low wages and migrate to countries like Germany and Italy, while healthcare professionals protest for better working conditions and salary adjustments.
Senator Rafael Filizzola demanded explanations from IPS president Isaías Fretes over the transfer of billions of guaranis from the social security fund to Ueno bank, which is linked to a former business partner of President Santiago Peña, following the relaxation of rules that reduced financial security requirements for the institution.
The IPS Hemodynamic Service is operating at only 40% of its capacity due to a lack of dedicated rooms, while specialists warn of a rise in heart attacks and hypertension among young Paraguayans under 40, driven by factors such as the use of energy drinks, anabolic steroids, vapes, and a sedentary lifestyle.
IPS canceled tenders that included items removed from its formulary, following the withdrawal of 23 products — 12 vaccines and 11 medications — as part of a broader review that eliminated 916 items from the institution's official supplies list.
The Hospiclean Consortium was reported to the DNCP for paying cleaning workers at the IPS below the legal minimum wage, despite declaring costs of up to G. 9.5 million per worker per month, while the outsourcing contract, signed in November 2024, had a total value of G. 126.9 million.
Mass resignations of professionals in the Neonatology Department at the IPS Central Hospital threaten the continuity of the service. Management is proposing public calls for foreign doctors to fill the vacancies.
The IPS Board of Directors unanimously approved a private godparent sponsorship proposal presented by board member Mirtha Arias to improve the conditions, considered precarious and inhumane, of shelters for relatives of hospitalized patients. A pilot plan will be implemented after discussions with pharmaceutical chambers and the institution's suppliers.
The president of IPS, Isaías Fretes, found leaks in 80% of the roof of Clínica 12 de Junio in Asunción, a hospital that opened just a year and a half ago and also suffers from issues such as a non-functioning water pump, a kitchen closed for over 18 months, and a flooded X-ray department. He has called for a comprehensive technical, administrative, and contractual audit to determine accountability.
The Attorney General, Emiliano Rolón, met with the president of the IPS, Isaías Fretes, to discuss the payment of a debt of approximately G₲ 10 billion related to the rent of properties occupied by the Public Prosecutor's Office in Asunción, with a commitment to settle the amount in monthly installments. This debt is part of a larger total exceeding G₲ 19 billion, which has significant implications for Paraguay's social security finances and raises concerns about governance and transparency at IPS.
Paraguay's Supreme Court rejected former Senator Kattya González's appeal, upholding the loss of her Senate seat and ending her judicial bid to return to the upper house.
The pharmaceutical company Megalabs Paraguay SA filed a complaint with the National Directorate of Public Procurement (DNCP) alleging that the Social Security Institute (IPS) suddenly and without prior notice moved up the bid opening date for a G. 51.5 billion tender to purchase critically low-stock medicines, preventing the company from submitting its bid on equal terms.
The Social Security Institute (IPS) failed in its electronic auction, managing to place only G. 30 billion of the G. 200 billion offered in Certificates of Deposit (CDA), leaving G. 170 billion unplaced.
The Instituto de Previsión Social (IPS) and the Dirección Nacional de Ingresos Tributarios (DNIT) have signed an agreement to cross-check financial and tax data, aiming to increase social security revenue in Paraguay and combat fraud and informality.
IPS President Isaías Fretes reported that the institution disbursed around Gs. 46 billion over a decade on renting instruments for knee surgeries, an amount far exceeding the purchase cost. The Board of Directors session also exposed 22 families that have not paid rent on IPS properties since 2012.
Isaías Fretes, president of the IPS, acknowledged on Friday that the institution is going through a critical liquidity and medicine shortage crisis, attributing the collapse to past administrations and stifling bureaucratic processes.
Paraguay's Social Security Institute (IPS) announced a contingency plan to address the medicine shortage crisis affecting its entire healthcare network. President Isaías Fretes confirmed the removal of nearly a thousand items from the formulary, sparking debate over the effectiveness of the measures.
On May 30, Asunción's historic center will host the second edition of the Feria Palmear 'Sem Fronteiras', bringing together 16 foreign communities in a celebration of food, music, and traditional dances, as a preview of National Immigrant Week.
Isaías Fretes, the new president of the Social Welfare Institute (IPS), says he will prioritize emergency measures before discussing structural reforms. Critics argue the approach repeats the predecessor's mistakes and that management needs concrete actions, not just announcements.
The president of the Social Insurance Institute (IPS), Isaías Fretes, ordered a temporary suspension of a tender for biological and immunosuppressant drugs valued at G. 376 billion. The decision was made during a Board of Directors meeting, on the grounds that the amount is excessive and requires greater transparency and evaluation by scientific societies. In contrast, the board approved the purchase of parenteral solutions for G. 17 billion, 47% below the initial estimate.
The Social Insurance Institute (IPS) announced the removal of 817 products from its formulary, a measure expected to generate significant savings and part of an effort to combat corruption within the institution, according to its president, Isaías Fretes.
The National Association of IPS Insured criticizes the new administration's delay in scheduling a meeting and demands a health emergency declaration. Meanwhile, the Board of Directors reveals that the pension fund cannot pay taxes on its real estate holdings due to legal gaps, accumulating debts and uninhabitable properties.