The Minister of Health, Mónica García, has defended in Congress the call for Specialized Health Training (FSE) for 2026, while admitting that the development of the process generated “moments of uncertainty, concern or even frustration among some applicants”.
“We are talking about a decisive exam in the career path of thousands of professionals, so it is logical that any change or delay generates concern. For our part, we take note of those concerns and work to continue improving the process,” the minister stated during her intervention this Tuesday in the Health Commission.
Even so, García has remarked that all candidates have been able to take the test and know their grade. “All of them will be able to choose their place within the established process”, she has stressed.
The head of Health has highlighted that relevant changes have been incorporated in this edition. “The in-person choice of places has been recovered, as we already did last year after the demands of applicants and professionals. We have also introduced an early reassignment mechanism for places that are renounced, so that if a person obtains a place and decides to leave it before joining, that place can be offered again and not be lost,” she explained.
About the delay in the start of the call, the minister has attributed it to the adaptation of the contracting procedures of the companies that provide support to the test, after the creation of the Contracting Board of the Ministry of Health. “That is to say, we apply the same criteria of transparency and control that are already applied to the rest of public contracts,” she indicated.
“At the same time, we have carried out a software application update that manages the entire process, necessary to adapt it to the constant increase in applicants and to improve the security and electronic processing of the procedure,” he added, also alluding to technological reinforcement.
Along these lines, he/she has detailed that the criteria for selecting the experts responsible for preparing the exam have been revised, “incorporating criteria of transparency, territorial representativeness and parity”.
The minister has also admitted that during the processing various incidents have been registered. “Typical of a call with tens of thousands of applicants, especially related to the assessment of merits or with the submission of incorrect documentation, which has forced each file to be rigorously reviewed to guarantee equal conditions,” she specified.
García has also denounced the impact of disinformation. “To this has been added the circulation of inaccurate information and hoaxes on social networks about supposed changes in dates, irregularities in the process or exam conditions that did not come from official sources and that have contributed to generating concern among some applicants. Therefore, from the Ministry we have insisted on the importance of always consulting the official information channels,” he remarked.
In her assessment, the head of Health has insisted that the process has developed without serious incidents. “The test was held in 25 locations, with nearly 700 examination tables and more than 2,000 people involved in its organization and supervision, guaranteeing the security of the exam at all times.”
“At this moment the definitive lists have already been published and we are working on the allocation of places, which foreseeably will begin in the second half of April”, has advanced.
From the opposition, PP deputy Elvira Velasco has conveyed to García that her Group has demanded an independent audit and has registered a non-legislative motion in the Health Committee. “It is unacceptable that a system has been jeopardized,” she has criticized.
The popular parliamentarian has lashed out against the “chaos” derived from the date modifications during the FSE of 2026. “Madam Minister, you have to understand that this offers no security whatsoever. I hope you take note and, of course, that you launch the audit that the MIR Association also requests, for the good of future calls and not to put the system at risk,” she has demanded.
The Ministry finalizes the Royal Decree on Health Technology Assessment
In her appearance, Mónica García has also announced that the Ministry is in the final phase of drafting the Royal Decree on the Evaluation of Health Technologies, with the aim of strengthening evidence-based decision-making in the National Health System.
“With this regulation we want to consolidate a more transparent, more coordinated between administrations and more predictable evaluation model for all system actors, so that decisions on the incorporation of new technologies, medicines or procedures are always based on their real health value and their impact on patients,” he/she/it stated.
Law on alcohol in minors
Also, the minister has communicated that in the coming weeks the processing of the Law on alcohol in minors will be promoted, “a regulation that addresses one of the main public health problems among the young population,” she added.
As he explained, in the coming days the period for the submission of total amendments will be opened, which will allow the initiative to continue its course in Parliament and open the debate on how to strengthen prevention, delay the age of initiation in consumption and better protect the health of adolescents. “We trust that this Chamber can address this issue with the seriousness and consensus it deserves,” he concluded.