Panama Strives to Solve Health Crisis
Panamanian health authorities will disinter on Monday the first ten corpses of patients that supposedly died due to consumption of poisoned medicines, judicial sources reported on Friday.

The fourth Superior Attorney District Attorney Dimas Guevara revealed that if an industrial substance called dietileneglicol is found in the corpses, they will order to exhume the rest of them.

According to the official, there have been 413 reports by people affected by the toxin, 353 of whom died, and 50 are recovering.

The district attorney is also investigating several health officials the Republuic´s ex Attorney General Ana Matilde Gomez accepted a lawsuit against her.

According to the current penal code, those who are found guilty of contaminating food or medicines will be given sentences from two to five years in prison.

Health Minister Camilo Allende; Social Security Fund (CSS) Director Rene Luciani, and members of the entity´s directive board are some of those under investigation.

To face up to the crisis, President Martin Torrijos announced a reform in the sector, which includes creation of National Health Assisting Authority, in charge of the services that CSS currently manages.