On April 21, 2020, the “Agreement amending the similar agreement establishing extraordinary actions to address the health emergency generated by the SARS-CoV2 virus, published on March 31, 2020” (the “New Agreement”) was published in the Official Gazette of the Federation.
The March 31 agreement (the “First Agreement”) ordered the immediate suspension of non-essential activities from March 30 to April 30, 2020, in order to reduce the spread of the virus in the community. In this regard, the New Agreement, by means of a modification to Section I of Article I of the First Agreement, extends the National Healthy Distance Day from March 30 to May 30, 2020, during which time non-essential activities will be suspended.
Likewise, Article Three is added to the First Agreement, which establishes that the extraordinary actions to address the sanitary emergency generated by the COVID-19 virus will cease to be implemented as of May 18, 2020 in the municipalities where, as of that date, there is low or no transmission of the virus. The Federal Health Secretariat will define the criteria for assessing the intensity of transmission of the COVID-19 virus. In addition, said Secretariat will indicate the guidelines for the reduction of mobility in municipalities with a different degree of propagation. Regardless of the intensity of transmission in each municipality, protection measures will be maintained for people in risk groups.
Article Four is added, which establishes that the Federal Health Secretariat will adapt the epidemiological surveillance system and other information systems, as deemed necessary to achieve surveillance of the demand and availability of hospital services at the second and third levels of medical care, as well as of patients who are seriously ill due to the COVID-19 virus.
Likewise, a Fifth Article is added, which mentions that the governments of the federal entities must: (i) keep updated the Daily Report of Occupancy, Availability and Care for Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) and any other that the Federal Health Secretariat may indicate, (ii) implement prevention and control measures in accordance with the general criteria issued by the Secretariat and in accordance with the magnitude of the epidemic, (iii) establish and implement mechanisms to reduce the mobility of inhabitants between municipalities with different degrees of spread, in accordance with the criteria established by the Ministry of Health; to this end, the Federal Public Administration agencies may cooperate with the state governments; and (iv) within the scope of its competence, ensure the implementation of these measures, and report to the Secretariat of Health on their follow-up, with the periodicity established by the Secretariat.
Finally, the governments of the federative entities in their capacity as health authorities and the members of the National Health System that provide health services in each entity, must execute and supervise the hospital conversion and expansion plans to guarantee the health care of the population for the COVID-19 disease, as well as for any other health care needs, as indicated in Article Six, which was also added by the New Agreement.
