President Calderón at Hoisting of White Flag Ceremony

May 4th 2007

    President Calderón congratulated Baja California on becoming one of the states that guarantees health services for all its inhabitants. “Through the incorporation of over 210 families into the Popular Insurance Scheme,” he added, “we are taking a firm step towards improving the well-being and quality of life of Baja California’s residents.” He explained that one of the current administration's goals is to achieve universal health coverage and that one of the most effective ways of achieving this is the Popular Insurance Scheme. This year government aims to reach 6,800,000 families, a 36% increase over last year. Moreover, all children born in Mexico since December 1 2006 are entitled to life-long medical insurance, known as Medical Insurance for a New Generation. To date, nearly 100,000 children have been incorporated into this scheme throughout the country, which entitles them to 255 health services and 287 types of medication.

    In addition to achieving universal health coverage, the current administration is also seeking to eliminate crime. To date, it has destroyed marihuana fields, confiscated over 12 tons of marijuana and impounded nearly 300 vehicles used for criminal activities. The president explained that the operations undertaken in Baja California are simply the first stage in a long-term strategy to combat crime. The second step will involve combating impunity and illegality, the third entails recovering public spheres while the fourth consists of establishing a new relationship between society and the authorities. The president ended by expressing his confidence that through unity and joint responsibility, society would be able to combat organized crime.

President Felipe Calderón's Bio

A native of Morelia, Michoacán, President Felipe Calderón was born on August 18th 1962.

    He obtained a law degree from the Escuela Libre de Derecho, and an MA in Economics from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México and in Public Administration from the University of Harvard.

    President Felipe Calderón occupied top positions in the party, such as National Youth Leader of the PAN in 1986, Secretary General in 1993 and President of National Action during the three-year period from 1996 to 1999. During his parliamentary career, he was a representative of the Legislative Assembly of the Federal District in 1988 and federal deputy in 1991.

    In 2000 he was part of the 58th Federal Period of Office, in which he served as Parliamentary Coordinator of the PAN and President of the Council of Political Coordination. Within public administration, President Felipe Calderón was general director of Banco Nacional de Obras y Servicios Públicos (BANOBRAS) in 1993 and Energy Secretary in 2004.

Related: Wikipedia Background on President Felipe Calderón