IMSS Admits Supply and Saturation Challenges Ahead of October 13 National March

The IMSS director acknowledges medicine supply and service saturation challenges ahead of the October 13 national march and the October 14 salary consultation.

The director general of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), Zoé Robledo, acknowledged on October 10, 2026 that the institute faces challenges in medicine supply and service saturation, and put average supply at 94%. Three days later, on Tuesday, October 13, Social Security workers will march to demand a larger salary increase.

Expansión Política reported that Robledo laid out the problem in a video message and maintained that supply reaches 94% and that "that 6% matters just as much." The director attributed the pressure to growth: beneficiaries rose from 20 million in 2019 to nearly 23 million in 2026, pensioners from 4.3 to 6.3 million, and dependents from 4.4 to 5.9 million. Robledo put the workforce at 511,000 employees and said the institute serves seven out of every 10 older adults in the country. Once Noticias reported that the official called for dialogue and ruled out that the protests have halted operations.

The conflict has an internal path to resolution. The National Union of Social Security Workers (SNTSS) called for Wednesday, October 14 a consultation on the 6.8% increase, made up of 2.9% to the base salary and 3.9% in benefits. Excélsior reported that the Interior Ministry (Secretaría de Gobernación) set up a working table between the union leadership and the dissidents, and that the consultation will be overseen by the Federal Center for Conciliation and Labor Registration. The IMSS stated it will abide by the result.

The October 13 march, called for 3:00 p.m. from the Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, will be joined by the CNTE, ISSSTE workers, and workers from the Metro, Pemex and the electricity sector, according to La Jornada and El Porvenir. The demands include a direct 10% increase, the departure of SNTSS general secretary Rafael Olivos Hernández, and an extraordinary national congress. The institute asked that access points not be blocked and assured that emergency care, hospitalization, intensive care, deliveries and hemodialysis are operating normally.

For anyone managing a beneficiary population, the calendar comes down to two dates: the march on the 13th and the consultation on the 14th. The operational channel is already open: unfilled prescriptions are reported at recetacompleta.gob.mx with the CURP, with a committed response in 36 hours or less.

This article was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence based on verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.

IMSS Admits Supply and Saturation Challenges Ahead of October 13 National March

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