Baja California Sur Health Secretary Ana Luisa Guluarte Castro announced that the state has approved a budget of 10.8 million pesos (roughly $540,000 USD) to purchase a new mobile medical unit. The unit will be built from scratch through a public bidding process and could be operational within three to four months.
Guluarte Castro made the announcement from La Paz on April 15. The mobile unit is designed to bring diagnostic screening services to remote communities across the peninsula that lack fixed hospital infrastructure.
Filling Gaps in Rural Healthcare Access
BCS stretches more than 1,200 kilometers from north to south, with long distances between population centers. Many small towns along the Transpeninsular Highway and the Sea of Cortez coast have no nearby hospital or clinic equipped for specialized screenings like mammography.
The new mobile unit will complement fixed mammography equipment already in place at IMSS-Bienestar hospitals in La Paz, Santa Rosalía, and Cabo San Lucas. The mammography equipment at the Cabo San Lucas hospital is also scheduled for replacement with a newer model later this year.
Public Bidding and Timeline
Because the unit must be custom-built, the state will open a public bidding process to select a manufacturer. Guluarte Castro said the unit should be ready for service before the end of 2026. The approved budget covers the full cost of acquisition.
IMSS-Bienestar, the federal healthcare system that replaced INSABI in 2023, operates the public hospitals in BCS that serve residents without private insurance or employer-based coverage. Mobile units allow the system to extend its reach to communities like Mulegé, Loreto, and smaller towns in the Sierra de la Laguna region where residents would otherwise need to travel hours for specialized care.
The purchase comes as BCS continues to invest in expanding public health infrastructure statewide. The state’s population has grown steadily in recent years, placing increased demand on medical services in both urban centers and rural areas.
This story was first reported by BCS Noticias.