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Institutions

Department of Health

Leads Puerto Rico’s public-health policy and exercises statutory health responsibilities. Its remit includes prevention, surveillance, regulation, and programs providing access to care; it is broader than operating hospitals or purchasing health insurance.

Arts. 1, 7, 12 ↗Secretary’s responsibilities ↗ · Sources consulted:

Department of Health · Departamento de Salud · DS

DSState-levelActive

Spanish legal name: Departamento de Salud. Spanish legal names are retained. Some English names are functional translations.

Official websiteThe mapPractice
Government level
State-level
Branch or grouping
Executive
Type
Department
Sources consulted
Oct 18, 2026

What it does

  • Establishes measures and regulations to prevent disease and protect public health, including surveillance and communicable-disease response. Its statutory powers operate through applicable instruments and procedures; this profile does not enumerate every current order.Arts. 4–5, 7, 12 ↗Art. 12 ↗ · Sources consulted:
  • Administers the Medicaid Program, which evaluates and certifies eligibility for government coverage. Applying, renewing, and keeping eligibility information current differ from attending a medical visit or choosing an insurer.Medicaid Program: eligibility and responsibilities ↗Art. VI, sec. 1 ↗ · Sources consulted:
  • Exercises authority concerning ASSMCA and ASEM under their respective statutes. ASSMCA has fiscal and administrative autonomy; ASEM has its own legal personality. Administrative attachment does not erase those distinctions or turn all health entities into a single office.Sec. 1 ↗Art. 3 ↗ · Sources consulted:
  • Its Secretary holds an ex officio seat on ASES’s board and chairs ASEM’s Participating Entities Board. A board seat and administrative attachment are different relationships and are distinguished on the map.Art. IV, secs. 3–4 ↗Art. 5 ↗ · Sources consulted:

In everyday life

A family seeking to learn whether it qualifies for Plan Vital starts with Medicaid’s eligibility assessment. Questions about coverage and contracted insurers go to ASES. Clinical care requires identifying the provider or program offering it. These three tasks all concern health but are not necessarily handled by the same office.Application and eligibility certification ↗Plan Vital: beneficiaries ↗Medical services ↗ · Sources consulted:

Health ↗

How to distinguish it from other institutions

ASES is a public corporation with separate legal personality. It contracts for and monitors insurance coverage; Health’s Medicaid Program evaluates eligibility. Shared policy responsibilities or board membership do not establish that ASES is an internal Health office.Art. IV, secs. 1–2; art. VI, sec. 1 ↗Art. VI, sec. 1 ↗Eligibility ↗ · Sources consulted:

ASSMCA provides mental-health and substance-use programs; ASEM organizes centralized Medical Center services. A treatment inquiry, hospital matter, and insurance-eligibility certification may require different contacts.Sec. 1 ↗Arts. 3–4 ↗Medicaid Program ↗ · Sources consulted:

Official services and information

Confirm requirements, forms, and schedules on the linked official portal.

Where it fits

Map groupings support navigation; they do not themselves establish reporting authority.

Legal basis

Constitution art. IV, secs. 5–6, establishes Health as an executive department. Act 81-1912, as amended, defines its Secretary’s health powers. The ASES, ASSMCA, and ASEM statutes allocate specific responsibilities; the general Health statute alone does not describe each institution’s governance.Arts. 1, 12 ↗Art. IV, secs. 5–6 ↗Art. IV, sec. 1 ↗Sec. 1 ↗Art. 3 ↗ · Sources consulted:

The enabling reference is a reading aid. Consult applicable texts and amendments in official sources; directory cards can retain older references.

Leadership & appointments

Secretary of Health

The Secretary heads the department and is appointed by the governor with Senate advice and consent. Health’s official profile identifies Dr. Víctor M. Ramos Otero. That published identity alone does not establish appointment and confirmation dates; this profile has not certified those dates.Art. IV, secs. 5–6 ↗Art. 1 ↗Secretary’s profile ↗ · Sources consulted:

Víctor M. Ramos Otero

Sources consulted: Oct 18, 2026 · Sources & method ↓

Appointment
Verification pending
Confirmation
Verification pending
Term end
Verification pending

Governance & composition

Overall departmental leadership rests with the Secretary, not a single corporate board governing every health institution. ASES and ASEM have their own statutory governing bodies; ASSMCA has an administrator under the Secretary’s statutory authority. Their membership and powers are explained in their separate profiles.Art. 1 ↗Art. IV, sec. 3 ↗Arts. 3, 5 ↗Secs. 7–8 ↗ · Sources consulted:

Sources consulted: Oct 18, 2026

Sources & method

The consultation date is not the institution’s own update date.

  1. PR.gov — Departamento de Salud ↗https://pr.gov/directorio-de-agencias/departamento-de-salud-ds-dSources consulted: Oct 17, 2026
  2. Ley 81-1912 — Departamento de Salud (compilación OGP) ↗https://bvirtualogp.pr.gov/ogp/Bvirtual/LeyesOrganicas/Pages/81-1912.pdfSources consulted: Oct 18, 2026 · Document revised: Jun 24, 2026
  3. Departamento de Salud — Perfil del Secretario ↗https://www.salud.pr.gov/CMS/643Sources consulted: Oct 18, 2026
  4. Departamento de Salud — Programa Medicaid ↗https://www.salud.pr.gov/CMS/85Sources consulted: Oct 18, 2026
  5. Ley 72-1993 — Administración de Seguros de Salud (compilación OGP) ↗https://bvirtualogp.pr.gov/ogp/Bvirtual/LeyesOrganicas/Pages/72-1993.pdfSources consulted: Oct 18, 2026 · Document revised: Apr 21, 2025
  6. Ley 67-1993 — ASSMCA (compilación OGP) ↗https://bvirtualogp.pr.gov/ogp/Bvirtual/LeyesOrganicas/Pages/67-1993.pdfSources consulted: Oct 18, 2026 · Document revised: Jan 2, 2025
  7. Ley 66-1978 — Administración de Servicios Médicos (compilación OGP) ↗https://bvirtualogp.pr.gov/ogp/Bvirtual/LeyesOrganicas/Pages/66-1978.pdfSources consulted: Oct 18, 2026 · Document revised: Apr 16, 2024
  8. ASES — Plan Vital: elegibilidad, servicios y derechos ↗https://www.ases.pr.gov/plan-vitalSources consulted: Oct 18, 2026
  9. ASEM — directorio de servicios médicos ↗https://www.asem.pr.gov/servicios-medicosSources consulted: Oct 18, 2026
  10. Constitución de Puerto Rico — Artículo IV (Poder Ejecutivo) ↗https://poderjudicial.pr/constitucion/articulo-iv/Sources consulted: Oct 18, 2026
  11. Departamento de Salud — portal y programas oficiales ↗https://www.salud.pr.gov/Sources consulted: Oct 18, 2026
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