The Ministry of Health (Minsa) has “disguised” care centers in at least 15 properties confiscated by the Ortega-Murillo dictatorship from opponents and NGOs. These have become supposed maternity homes, health posts and now even a “progressive primary hospital”, a term invented by the Minsa to overstate the growth of Nicaragua’s health network.
This was evident with the inauguration of the “Acoyapa Bendito” Primary Progressive Hospital, installed in the Acoyapa Equestrian Club confiscated from the Acoyapa Horsemen’s Association. August 24, 2024.
This “new hospital” completely lacks minimum hospital conditions because it was only painted chicha pink, portraits of the couple of dictators and domestic furniture such as rocking chairs, which are not even the same set, and single wooden beds, covered with white sheets, were installed. To simulate that it is a medical center, they also brought a couple of stretchers, a mechanical scale and a portable electrocardiograph.
Failure of the “makeup” of Minsa assets
The use of domestic furniture and pink paint is a recurring practice of the Minsa in the inaugurations of confiscated properties that are converted into supposed “public assets.” This is what happened with the building confiscated de facto to CONFIDENTIAL, on December 14, 2018.
The property located in Managua was stolen and remained empty, under police guard for two years. In 2021, they handed it over to the Minsa to install the supposed Maternal House of District I “Camila López”. The house was inaugurated using the same furniture from CONFIDENTIAL and a few furniture and medical supplies.
The supposed mother’s house never worked. In November 2024, CONFIDENTIAL published photographs that showed the deterioration of the property two years after the supposed inauguration and two days later, the Minsa painted the house and reopened it, but now with the name of “Camila López maternal and child clinic”.
The Canal 100% Noticias building had the same fate. It was confiscated on December 21, 2018 and on February 25, 2021, the “Valentín Méndez” Care Center for People with Alcoholism and Drug Addictions was inaugurated there. This center does not operate, but is kept under riot control. Other buildings that had the same purpose are in operation, such as the “Porfirio García” National Diabetes Center installed in the Institute for Democracy and Development (IPADE).
The regime even prevented canceled organizations from donating their assets to other social NGOs such as Fundación Teletón, to whom the María Elena Cuadra Women’s Movement had donated its offices. The pattern observed in these transfers is that the regime carries out the inaugurations with great publicity, but never says that they are confiscated properties.
Of the 15 confiscated buildings that now belong to the Minsa, there are five that were converted into supposed specialized medical centers:
- “The CONFIDENCIAL building converted into the ‘Camila López’ Maternal and Child Clinic.”
- Institute for Democracy and Development (IPADE) converted into the “Porfirio García” National Diabetes Center.
- The “Hermanas Clarisas Franciscanas” monastery became the “Doctor Jacobo Marcos Frech” Mental Health Center.
- The Francisco de Sola campus of the Central American Institute of Business Administration (Incae) was converted into the Dr. Juan Ignacio Gutiérrez Sacasa National Cancer Center.
- Hostal El Central, also from Briceño, was converted into the Sacuanjoche Hemodialysis Center in San Rafael del Sur.
Four that were converted into health centers or posts:
- Managua office of the María Elena Cuadra Women’s Movement where they installed the Dra. Erlinda López Health Center.
- The Managua office of the Nicaraguan Center for Human Rights (Cenidh) converted into the “José del Carmen Ruíz” Family and Community Health Post.
- The office in Juigalpa, Chontales del Cenidh where they installed the “Guadalupe Antonio Galeano Amador” Health Post.
- The Nazareth Clinic in San Rafael del Norte that became managed by the Minsa.
Two other buildings were converted into physiotherapy and natural medicine centers:
- The office of the Foundation for Municipal Promotion and Development (Fundación Popol Na) of Managua converted into the “Elena del Carmen Lau” Family and Community Center.
- The Las Colinas Country Club where they installed the Ciro Molina National Physiotherapy Center.
There are also two stolen properties that are now supposed addiction care centers:
- The 100% Noticias building renamed the “Valentín Méndez” Care Center for People with Alcoholism and Drug Addictions
- The Managua office of the Health Information and Advisory Services Center (CISAS) converted into the “Benjamín Medina Solís” Care Center for people with alcoholism and drug addictions.
Added to these are two other properties converted into supposed primary hospitals:
- El Campestre El Vivero, property of the exiled journalist Henry Briceño, converted into the “San Rafael del Sur” Primary Hospital.
- The Acoyapa Equestrian Club, which is now the supposed “Acoyapa Bendito” Primary Progressive Hospital.






There are no “progressive primary hospitals”
A doctor consulted by CONFIDENTIAL He explained that the term “progressive primary hospital” is an invention of the dictatorship. “There are other terms like ‘Integrated Hospital’ where they mix medical treatments with alternative medicine,” but what there is in Nicaragua is an invention.
In the press release from the Presidency, the regime assured that this supposed hospital will have eight offices, physiotherapy rooms, natural medicine areas, waiting room, pharmacy and auditorium. These will provide general medicine, gynecology, nutrition, natural medicine and physiotherapy. There will also be electrocardiogram, electromyogram and ultrasound services, but in the photographs released by the propaganda there is no evidence of all this conditioning.
“Our popular Sandinista revolution will continue to advance in the construction and development of this hospital, strengthening the family and community health model to ensure the right to health of the Nicaraguan people,” the statement reads. release.
With the usurpation of confiscated properties and the annexation of low-coverage hospitals in its hospital network, as the investigation showed “Hospitalitos”: The regime’s deception to inflate the hospital networkthe regime inflates Nicaragua’s health progress and disseminates in its media and news pages propaganda that the health network has 79 hospitals, 142 health centers, 1,426 health posts, 182 maternity homes and 101 homes for special needs.















