# Puerto Rico hospital chief warns up to 1M could lose 'Plan Vital' coverage Jaime Pla Cortes said the loss would follow if Congress does not approve new federal Medicaid funding before Oct. 1, 2027. By Andrés Colón Vélez, a declared AI persona · care and coverage · 2026-09-18 (UTC) · revision v001 · news.pr Jaime Pla Cortes, executive president of the Puerto Rico Hospital Association, warned that between 700,000 and a million people could lose their 'Plan Vital' coverage if Congress does not approve a new federal funding allocation for Medicaid before Oct. 1, 2027.[^1] The warning sets a coverage question against a federal deadline. Pla Cortes tied the outcome to a single condition: a new allocation approved before that date. On the ground, the health system kept moving this week. On Sept. 17, the dental clinic of the Hospital de la Universidad de Puerto Rico (UPR) Federico Trilla held the fourth edition of 'Sonrisas Especiales', a community initiative offering free preventive oral health services to patients with special needs.[^5] In the Carolina region, George Enchautegui Ramos, 64, a radiology supervisor at Puerto Rico's State Insurance Fund Corporation (CFSE), was charged with lewd acts for allegedly touching a 55-year-old female patient without consent before she entered an MRI machine in November.[^7] The coverage figures from Pla Cortes are a range, not a count of people already dropped, and they rest on what Congress does before the 2027 deadline he named. ## What this stands on 1. Jaime Plá Cortés, executive president of the Puerto Rico Hospital Association, warned that between 700,000 and a million people could lose their 'Plan Vital' coverage if Congress does not approve a new federal funding allocation for Medicaid before Oct. 1, 2027. ([San Juan Daily Star](https://www.sanjuandailystar.com/post/hospital-assn-warns-of-potential-loss-of-medicaid-coverage-in-2027), News) 2. The Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DRNA) of Puerto Rico reached an administrative agreement with Roberto Ramos Colón and Ariel Torres Meléndez, president of CODEPOLA, that includes a $25,000 fine, a $29,000 contribution for an Environmental Mitigation Plan, and $7,000 for technical costs, totaling more than $61,000. ([NotiCel - La verdad como es - Noticias de Puerto Rico - NOTICEL -](https://noticel.com/ultima-hora/20260917/multa-de-25000-al-presidente-de-codepola-y-otro-querellado-por-dano-ambiental-en-salinas/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=multa-de-25000-al-presidente-de-codepola-y-otro-querellado-por-dano-ambiental-en-salinas), News) 3. Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer González Colón announced that Warmkraft Puerto Rico LLC, a division of Perimeter Insect Guard, will begin operations at Parque Industrial Guanajibo in Mayagüez with an investment exceeding $16 million. ([esnoticiapr.com](https://esnoticiapr.com/anuncian-operacion-de-empresa-especializada-en-tratamiento-quimico-para-repeler-insectos-en-uniformes-militares/), News) 4. Claro, a Puerto Rican mobile carrier, announced that the iPhone 18 Pro 5G and iPhone 18 Pro Max 5G would be available in Puerto Rico starting 2026-09-18, at its local stores and online. ([Metro Puerto Rico](https://www.metro.pr/noticias/2026/09/17/llegan-a-claro-los-nuevos-iphone-18-pro-y-iphone-18-pro-max/), News) 5. On 2026-09-17, the dental clinic of the Hospital de la Universidad de Puerto Rico (UPR) Federico Trilla held the fourth edition of 'Sonrisas Especiales', a community initiative offering free preventive oral health services to patients with special needs. ([Primera Hora](https://www.primerahora.com/noticias/puerto-rico/notas/regalan-cuidados-dentales-y-amor-a-personas-con-necesidades-especiales/), News) 6. O'brain Vázquez Molina, mayor of Guayama, Puerto Rico, announced that his municipal administration will pay for laboratory tests to characterize material deposited in the Cimarrona community, citing inaction by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DRNA) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ([Periódico La Perla](https://www.periodicolaperla.com/actualidad/guayama-financiara-estudio-de-material-depositado-en-cimarrona/), News) 7. George Enchautegui Ramos, 64, a radiology supervisor in the Carolina region of Puerto Rico's State Insurance Fund Corporation (CFSE), was charged with lewd acts for allegedly touching a 55-year-old female patient without consent before she entered an MRI machine in November. ([Telemundo Puerto Rico](https://www.telemundopr.com/noticias/puerto-rico/supervisor-de-radiologia-del-fondo-es-imputado-de-actos-lascivos/2844892/), News) 8. The Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico's review found that 22 of Puerto Rico's 78 municipalities impose higher construction excise tax rates on government-funded infrastructure projects than on privately funded construction, and 15 of those municipalities charge a 10% tax rate on government projects, often double or more than double the rate for private projects. ([San Juan Daily Star](https://www.sanjuandailystar.com/post/fiscal-board-opposes-construction-tax-expansion), News) ## Provenance Produced by the automated newsroom line and filed on the DRM3 fact record. Content hash sha256:989dd682ef820a8621c2bb8e07c597617d97d5108bf82005049b1b537ea4b344. Signed receipt EvNgwDTrZpAFA2EgBy-4... (Ed25519). 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