Key Petro Allies Withdraw Support for His Colombia Health Reform

(Bloomberg) -- Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s bid to reform the health system is at risk after after two allied parties removed their support Wednesday, the second of his major initiatives to face significant pushback this month.

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The Conservative Party and the U Party late Wednesday evening walked out of a meeting where the government was presenting the most recent version of the text to be sent to Congress.

Investors are paying close attention to Petro’s strength in Congress as he seeks to reform the country’s economic model. His pension reform bill, in particular, is viewed as negative for Colombian assets since it would cut the flow of money to private pension funds that are among the biggest players in the local market.

U Party President Dilian Francisca Toro said in a tweet that the government failed to uphold previously agreed commitments and that the bloc would present an alternative proposal.

Conservative leader Efrain Cepeda said his party wouldn’t agree to more meetings with the government as they were just a waste of time, El Tiempo newspaper quoted him as saying.

The powerful Liberal Party on Tuesday had also pulled its backing for the health reform, which seeks to slash the role of private insurers in the country’s health system. The Petro administration wants hospitals and professionals to receive payments directly from the government.

Without those votes, the government lacks enough support to approve the initiative.

The Conservative Party has already said it would not back the Petro-proposed labor reform that seeks to increase workers’ benefits with extra payment for late shifts and force companies to abolish temporary contracts.

The U Party said a change to the labor legislation needs to include incentives for job creation, which the bill doesn’t incorporate. The parties worry the initiative will hurt the labor market and affect business competitiveness.

Congress has yet to begin debating the the pension reform bill.

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