Colombia Constitutional Court sets rules for EPS to provide wheelchairs to children

The Constitutional Court of Colombia has established criteria regarding when Health Promoting Entities (EPS) must provide wheelchairs and other technical aids to children with disabilities. The ruling follows a legal challenge filed by the family of an 11-year-old girl with spastic cerebral palsy, who required a motorized wheelchair and a specialized bath chair to manage daily activities.

Famisanar EPS had initially denied the request, arguing that there was no specific medical order and that mobility aids should be provided by territorial authorities rather than the EPS. However, the Court’s Sixth Review Chamber ruled that administrative or financial barriers cannot restrict access to necessary technologies when the fundamental rights of minors and persons with disabilities are at stake.

The Court emphasized that children and adolescents hold reinforced constitutional protection, meaning their health services must be guaranteed in an opportune and preferential manner. The decision also noted that for persons with disabilities, technical aid decisions must consider both medical conditions and the patient's economic situation. In this specific case, the Court concluded the minor was entitled to the motorized wheelchair as it is not expressly excluded from the Health Benefit Plan (PBS).