Illegality warned in transfer of funds from Idoppril to Senasa

Several lawyers questioned the legality of the decision to take 6 billion pesos from the Dominican Institute for the Prevention and Protection of Occupational Risks (Idoppril) to mitigate the financial problems of the National Health Insurance (SENASA).

Administrative lawyer Olivo Rodríguez Huertas warned that Resolution 619-08 of the National Social Security Council (CNSS) could contradict Law 397-19 , which created Idoppril and defined specific purposes for its technical reserves .

"That law very clearly outlines the destination of those resources , which obviously have to do with aspects pertaining to its regulatory scope and its purpose as an institution for the protection of workers' health and occupational risks. Therefore, anything done outside of that framework requires, of course, a legal amendment ," he argues.

This transaction was authorized by a technical report from the Superintendency of Labor Risks (Sisalril), which evaluated "the feasibility of using surplus technical reserves from the Labor Risk Insurance (SRL) to support the Dominican Social Security System (SDSS)."

Regarding these doubts, the head of Sisalril , Miguel Ceara Hatton , assures that the resolution is legal . "As far as I understand, it was legal, so I have nothing further to add," the official states.

The measure was based on Article 20 of the aforementioned Law 397-19 , which provides that " Idoppril resources will be distributed among administrative expenses, health benefits, and economic benefits for labor protection, in the proportions established by its Board of Directors, in accordance with the regulations issued by the CNSS."

However, including Senasa on that list of beneficiaries raises legal concerns , according to attorney Rafael Dickson , also from the administrative branch.

"It would seem that the issue of the ARS Senasa falls within a dubious legitimacy in that context, because ( Law 397-19 ) speaks of certain protections that have no direct relationship with Ars Senasa ," he alleges.

Dickson points out that Senasa is a public institution that manages the health risks of its members, and he believes it is questionable that this decision would be made at a time when the entity is embroiled in a scandal involving distraction and mismanagement of public funds .

Legitimacy could be achieved if this issue is introduced into next year's General Budget Law or the 2025 Reformulated Budget , according to Rodríguez Huerta.

Resolution 619-08 also transferred 6 billion pesos to the Contributory Regime Health Care Account and 1.5 billion pesos "to inject subsidy funds that support economic benefits for common illnesses, breastfeeding, and maternity."

In total, 12.5 billion pesos were subtracted from Idoppril's technical reserves , which would reach 55.435 billion by December 2025 , according to the projections cited in the document.

It establishes that this bribe "does not compromise the financial stability of the industry ."

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