A Mexican lawmaker is blaming budget cuts under the current administration for recent measles deaths among children, arguing that sufficient funds were available to purchase vaccines. The accusations come as the country grapples with a resurgence of the disease.
During a session of the Chamber of Deputies, Éctor Jaime Ramírez Barba, a member of the National Action Party (PAN), asserted that “You can’t blame Porfirio Díaz now; children born during the López Obrador administration are dying due to a lack of measles vaccines.”
Ramírez Barba, a physician and member of the National Academy of Medicine with experience at institutions including the IMSS, ISSSTE, and Hospital Ángeles de León, claimed that 44.457 billion pesos allocated for vaccine purchases went unused. He further detailed the alleged underspending, stating that 30 billion pesos were approved in 2022 but only 7 billion were spent, leaving 23 billion unutilized according to the Public Account of that year.
“In 2023, 14 billion pesos were allocated by this Chamber and only 3 billion pesos were used. In 2024, 14 billion pesos were allocated by this Chamber and only 4 billion pesos were spent. In 2025, 4.6 billion pesos were spent and only 3.9 billion pesos were utilized,” he added. “That is to say, 44.457 billion pesos allocated to the government of President López Obrador were not used to buy vaccines.”
Ramírez Barba calculated that 120 pesos per vaccine would have been enough to immunize the approximately 2 million children born each year, totaling 256 million pesos for vaccinations. Over six years, he said, the total cost would have been 1.1 billion pesos, a fraction of the unspent 44.457 billion pesos.
PAN Proposes National Vaccination Registry
The lawmaker proposed the creation of a National Vaccination Registry to address the issue. He cited a recent National Health and Nutrition Survey (ENSANUT) which reportedly indicated that only 6 out of 10 children were vaccinated against measles. However, he noted that the survey did not identify which children remained unvaccinated.
“If a child is born, and we know that two million children are born, and is born in an institution, mostly public, where it can know what its name is, who its mother was, there should be an electronic vaccination card that from that moment registers all vaccines, including the one at birth, to know what vaccines are missing,” he explained.
Ramírez Barba stated that such a registry previously existed but was discontinued in 2019, though it is currently being implemented in some states like Guanajuato. He also noted that the IMSS should have a similar system in place, and that recent legislative reforms approved in January 16 of this year, including ten initiatives from the PAN, address digital health issues.
He argued that a National Vaccination Registry would allow authorities to identify and reach unvaccinated children, and would also require a secure budget for vaccinations. The proposal comes as health officials work to contain a recent measles outbreak in Mexico.
