Around 18 March 2025 (as reported), in Pereira (Risaralda), dozens of patients affiliated with the healthcare provider Nueva EPS protested outside its main office, denouncing poor healthcare services, including delays in medication delivery, difficulties scheduling specialist appointments, and inadequate medical care. The protesters demanded urgent solutions from both the provider and the national government regarding the crisis within the entity.

Supply-chain Risk Briefing

1) Summary On March 18, 2025, dozens of Nueva EPS medical insurance members held a peaceful protest in front of the company headquarters in Pereira, Risaralda Department, Colombia, protesting the deterioration of medical service quality. This is classified as a low-risk protest reflecting a medical system crisis including delays in pharmaceutical deliveries and difficulties in scheduling specialist appointments.

2) Supply-chain impact

• Medical·pharmaceutical supply chain: Confirmed delays in pharmaceutical deliveries by medical insurance companies in the Pereira region, suggesting structural vulnerabilities in regional pharmaceutical distribution networks and medical service supply chains
• Regional economic impact: Risaralda Department is a central coffee-producing region in Colombia, and continued medical service instability could indirectly affect agricultural labor and regional productivity
• Government response pressure: As protesters demand national government intervention, potential changes in related industry operating environment due to future medical system reforms or regulatory changes

3) Watch points

• Expansion of follow-up protests: Need to monitor whether similar medical insurance-related complaints spread to other regions in Colombia
• Government policy response: Track government announcements or policy changes for improving Nueva EPS and Colombia's medical system
• Regional service normalization: Confirm whether medical services and pharmaceutical supply conditions in the Pereira region recover