ISSSTE Expands "The Clinic Is Ours" Program to 633 Health Units

ISSSTE expanded its community-managed clinic improvement program, The Clinic Is Ours, from 562 to 633 medical units in 2026, incorporating mixed-level facilities for the first time. The expansion, backed by a reported MX$369.12 million (US$21.09 million) budget, matters for medical device suppliers, construction firms, and healthcare service providers, as it forms part of a broader ISSSTE and federal government push to modernize Mexico's public health infrastructure. 

ISSSTE expanded The Clinic Is Ours, its community-managed clinic improvement program, from 562 medical units benefited in 2025 to 633 in 2026. The growth adds Hospital Clinics, Family Medicine Clinics for Specialities, and other facilities to a program previously centered on primary care, according to a balance presented by Martí Batres, Director General, ISSSTE.  

The program channels budget directly to medical units so beneficiaries decide which equipment or improvements to prioritize. “The program The Clinic is Ours arrived like a blessing to ISSSTE,” says Batres, recalling that clinics once lacked basic tools such as thermometers and blood pressure monitors. Now, he says, beneficiaries can acquire what each clinic needs through a self-managed process.  

During 2025, the program's first year at the ISSSTE, 3,559 pieces of medical equipment were purchased and 2,839 infrastructure works were completed, according to Batres.  

The Clinic Is Ours channels resources directly to the Health Committee of Wellbeing (COSABI), citizen committees formed by beneficiaries and clinic staff, who identify priority needs and decide which supplies or renovations to fund. Earlier this year, ISSSTE reported that the 2026 rollout would extend to 635 medical units through 635 COSABI committees, backed by a budget of MX$369.12 million (US$21.09 million), an investment expected to benefit approximately 13.3 million beneficiaries assigned to primary care units nationwide.  

The mechanism forms part of a broader push to strengthen ISSSTE's medical infrastructure, which has also included a MX$298 million investment in electric hospital beds and operating room renovations, and sits within the federal government's wider National Hospital Infrastructure Plan 2024-2030, which commits close to MX$181 billion (US$9.65 billion) through 2030 to build, expand, or replace 152 public hospitals across IMSS, ISSSTE, and IMSS-Bienestar.  

Reported purchases under the program range from basic supplies, such as thermometers, glucometers, oximeters, and examination tables, to higher-complexity equipment, including portable X-ray units, autoclaves, fetal dopplers, and standing blood pressure monitors. Some clinics have also acquired refrigerators for the cold chain used to store medications and vaccines, along with complete dental units, addressing a critical requirement for temperature-controlled storage, although ISSSTE has not disclosed how many refrigeration units were purchased or where they were installed.

Beyond equipment, resources have funded infrastructure adjustments, including new spaces for laboratories, telemedicine, and additional consultation rooms, as well as restroom rehabilitation. Several units also installed roofing and ramps to improve access for older adults and beneficiaries with reduced mobility, addressing physical barriers common in clinics not originally designed under current accessibility standards.

The expansion from 562 to 633 units, an increase of 71 medical facilities compared with the program's first year at ISSSTE, comes without disclosed indicators on execution timelines, the share of resources exercised, results by state, or oversight mechanisms. The diversity of purchases across units, ISSSTE says, reflects uneven needs: some clinics require basic consultation tools, while others need to renew clinical equipment or expand their capacity to resolve procedures on-site.

The program's effectiveness will depend less on the number of units benefited than on how new equipment integrates into daily care. A portable X-ray unit or fetal doppler can expand a clinic's diagnostic capabilities, but only with trained staff, defined protocols, and adequate technical conditions for safe operation. Similarly, a new telemedicine space does not guarantee service delivery on its own; connectivity, specialist availability, and clear patient-selection criteria are also required.

Community participation in defining priorities can help investments respond to local needs, but it also requires transparent decision-making processes, documented procurement, and accountability. ISSSTE has framed the program within the federal government's broader renewal of the public health system, though the central challenge going forward will be demonstrating that the expansion of The Clinic Is Ours produces verifiable, sustained improvements in quality, accessibility, and the resolution capacity of primary care.