Mexico Begins National Rollout of Farmacias del Bienestar

Mexico began the rollout of its new Farmacias del Bienestar (Well-Being Pharmacies) initiative, a program intended to expand access to no-cost medicines for beneficiaries of Salud Casa por Casa (Health House by House). President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the start of operations during a morning press briefing, positioning the effort as a structural change in how patients obtain prescribed treatments through the public system.

Authorities say that the first phase starts in the State of Mexico with 500 operating modules. These small pharmacy units will be located outside public health centers and within Tiendas del Bienestar (Stores for Well-Being) to reduce wait times and streamline medication pickup. By placing the modules near existing service points, authorities aim to ease congestion in traditional pharmacy areas and offer patients a direct route to receive prescriptions linked to the home-based care program.

Sheinbaum says the model will expand gradually until it reaches all 32 states. The administration expects nationwide coverage by March 2026. Officials emphasize that users will not need to enter health facilities to access their medicines, noting that the external modules are designed to simplify logistics while maintaining alignment with public health protocols.

The initiative marks one of the first major public health actions under the new federal administration. While full operational details have yet to be outlined, the government indicated that the program will continue scaling through 2026, with the objective of making essential medications available at no cost for qualifying patients across the country.

This program is part of the administration’s broader effort to strengthen the public healthcare system and expand access to essential medicines in underserved areas. In May 2025, Sheinbaum announced that the rollout would include 5,000 pharmacies in remote communities located in Tiendas del Bienestar, formerly Diconsa, and another 10,000 outside health centers affiliated with IMSS, IMSS-Bienestar, and ISSSTE.

During the press conference, Sheinbaum said the first phase would prioritize medications used in the Salud Casa por Casa program, which provides preventive care for older adults and people with disabilities. The program includes monthly home visits, medical follow-ups, digital health records, and prescriptions that can be filled at the Farmacias del Bienestar. “We will proudly say, in just a few years, that we are the most important health prevention program in the world,” she states.

Sheinbaum added that the project would not require new funding and would be financed through the existing 2024 and 2025 budgets for public medicine procurement. Additional costs would be limited to basic infrastructure, such as shelving and small structures adjacent to health facilities.

Shortages in Mexico’s public sector and the growing burden of chronic diseases underscore the need to improve access to medicines, explains Marcos Pascual, CEO, Asesoría en Farmacias. One of Mexico’s central challenges is the uneven distribution of medical resources across regions, with rural and marginalized communities facing the greatest barriers to medicines and health technologies, he adds.

Access to affordable, quality medicines is a fundamental aspect of the right to health and to scientific progress, reports the UNDP. The COVID-19 pandemic underscored how essential strong public medicine procurement is for health systems, which requires ensuring access, efficiency, and quality.

“Access to medicines is an essential part of the right to health, which is a human right,” says Alejandro Luna, Partner, OLIVARES. Barriers vary according to social, economic, or political factors, so a multidimensional strategy is necessary to address them, he adds.