The Right to Health in Times of Pandemic in Colombia: Between Endemic Inequity and the State of Emergency

Purpose/Context. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent health emergency allow analyzing, from bioethics and biolaw, problems related to the principle of distributive justice in the structural context of endemic inequality in Colombia. Method/Approach. This article analyzes regulatory adjustments in Colombia that guarantee the right to health amidst the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Results/Findings. Despite regulatory adjustments and the declaration of the state of health emergency in Colombia, persistent social and economic inequality in various regions, failure to intervene social determining factors, the poor working conditions of health workers, and difficulties in materializing the principle of reciprocity have hindered the mitigation of the pandemic's adverse effects on the most vulnerable populations. Discussion/Conclusions/Contributions. No health system in the world was prepared for the challenges the pandemic has posed. Even though contingency regulations have been issued in Colombia, deep gaps in distributive justice, regional inequality, and failure to comply with principles outlined in the statutory health law remain critical.