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Petro Faces Backlash for Releasing Dead Child’s Medical Record in Hemophilia Case

The move intensified scrutiny of a health system accused of delaying a hemophilia drug needed by seven-year-old Kevin Acosta.

Overview

  • Kevin Acosta, 7, died in Bogotá after a bicycle fall and more than 24 hours without the treatment his condition required, according to his mother’s account to Colombian media.
  • The family says his access to emicizumab had been interrupted after Nueva EPS ended a supply contract and redirected them between providers without restoring delivery.
  • President Gustavo Petro and Health Minister Guillermo Alfonso Jaramillo publicly emphasized family prevention, with Petro saying a hemophiliac child should not ride a bicycle.
  • Petro later disclosed details from the child’s clinical history without authorization, drawing legal warnings over patient confidentiality and potential data‑privacy violations and prompting condemnation from the family.
  • The Defensoría del Pueblo and medical groups described the case as a failure of medicine access, echoing a December 2025 Procuraduría report on worsening shortages and the troubled state of intervened EPSs, including Nueva EPS.