Daily coverage from across the country, written for the expat community
Results for “medical”Clear
An incident at the Paute Molino substation caused outages and programmed disconnections in several parts of Ecuador early Tuesday, including Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca and Loja.
Quito reactivated pico y placa on June 29 for cars and motorcycles inside the city’s urban restriction area. Drivers should check the last digit of their plate before heading into the capital.
Traffic on the Balbanera-Pallatanga-Cumandá road is restricted from June 22 through June 28, 2026 for rehabilitation works. The route is a key Sierra-to-Coast corridor used by private vehicles, interprovincial buses and heavy cargo.
Guayaquil has more than 100 kilometers of streets under intervention across the north, center and south of the city. Some merchants report sales declines of 40% to 50% as road closures and restricted access affect customer traffic.
Ecuador's customs service found 21 hidden iPhones in luggage from a passenger arriving from Panama at Guayaquil's airport. In a separate Quito airport case, customs also retained about 6,000 dental medical-device items including implants, ligatures and resins.
IESS says Teodoro Maldonado Carbo Hospital allocated $435,083 for medications and supplies, including antibiotics, neonatal respiratory supplies, suction hoses and Tocilizumab. For expats using IESS or watching the public system, this is a concrete supply update with named purchases and dollar amounts.
Guayaquil saw flooding for the second consecutive day after intense rain affected northern, central and southern sectors. Critical points included Sauces, Samanes, Las Orquideas, Bastion and Via Perimetral.
A legal reform moving through Ecuador's Assembly aims to clear about 12,000 abandoned containers from the country's ports. The backlog includes roughly $450 million in retained cargo and average wait times of 365 days.
El Universo reports Ambato urban and rural transport operators restricted service on June 1, working only from 08:00 to 14:00 while seeking a fare adjustment. The current urban fare is 30 cents.
Primicias reports CNEL published a search tool for electricity cut schedules on Saturday, May 30, and Sunday, May 31. The schedules matter for residents planning errands, work, charging and travel over the weekend.
Primicias reports Ecuador recorded 10,562 tuberculosis cases in 2025 and 676 deaths nationwide. The report says prisons accounted for 2,576 cases, highlighting a public-health problem concentrated inside the prison system.
El Mercurio reports the Biess Credicasa mortgage plan has received 1,600 requests nationwide for more than $81 million. The plan offers a 2.99% mortgage rate for homes up to $65,000.
