IMSS Revives Cozumel Clinic Renovation to Add Beds While Planning New Hospital

Cozumel, Quintana Roo — The Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) has restarted a renovation project for the island’s family clinic, aiming to improve infrastructure and meet growing demand for medical services, the agency’s Quintana Roo delegate announced.

Delegate Víctor Gasca Martínez said the clinic currently has 25 beds and seven general medicine offices. The renovation will temporarily add 10 beds to address immediate needs while planning advances for a new hospital with 72 beds and expanded specialties.

“The renovation has practically been restarted to be carried out as soon as possible,” Gasca said.

Cozumel has 55,727 registered IMSS beneficiaries, a figure that has steadily increased since 2023, according to the delegate. The island’s geographic isolation makes it urgent to have adequate facilities to avoid frequent patient transfers to Playa del Carmen, Cancún, or Mexico City.

Regarding timelines, Gasca noted that an investment catalog update was completed because the original plan involved expanding onto a neighboring street that could not be donated. “Today we have restructured these concepts to establish estimated investment amounts, and I hope to have concrete figures soon,” he said, indicating no firm schedule yet.

In addition to current basic specialties — internal medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and pediatrics — the planned new hospital would offer 19 specialties, including dermatology, nephrology, and ophthalmology, tailored to local epidemiological needs.

The IMSS is committed to addressing the needs of Cozumel residents, with the clinic renovation serving as an intermediate step toward building a larger, modern hospital, Gasca said.