he General Auditor's Office thoroughly analyzed DSyETS’ administration. The first identified shortcoming had to do with a "failure to implement basic control mechanisms that will facilitate the monitoring of the stages of procurement, storage and distribution of drugs, reagents and supplies."

There are three reservoirs primarily intended for drug storage: one located on Brandsen Street, another in Virrey Ceballos, and one for "small storage" at the headquarters of the Office being audited, which is located in the Health Department.

Particularly, AGN stated that after their investigation "in situ" both at Brandsen Street and the Department of Health reservoirs they "do not have the corresponding authorization of the National Administration of Drugs, Food, and Medical Technology (ANMAT).” They also did not find "elements for temperature and humidity control, nor the existence of a logistics arrangement for expired and/or broken medications.”

The report suggests that there are opportunities in which shipments can carry expired medication. According to the agency, "there is no control entity that forces the soon-to-expire medication to be delivered first”. Also, “there is no register of the medications returned by the different jurisdictions.”

It is important to remember that we are talking about "indispensable" medication for AID patients, either to prevent or to mitigate the disease. According to the UN, in 2011 AIDS killed 1.7 million people worldwide.

Drugs, reagents, and supplies

Furthermore, at the Brandsen reservoir the audit team "found differences within the medication and also saw that the place was being renovated." At the Department’s headquarters, the watchdog said that "because the drugs are held at the same address, the controls are done by the people who have to administer them," this is a clear lack of control by opposition. To these observations we must also add that "there is no stock available, this makes emergency purchases almost impossible. This shows a lack of foresight as well as a lack of efficient selection mechanisms."

As for the reagents used during testing to confirm diseases, the Office of AIDS reported to AGN that "according to tender regulations, providers are responsible for distributing the medication to the various jurisdictions." However, this circuit "does not have a tracking system."

Concerning the supplies, which include condoms and intimate gels that can be seen in advertising campaigns, the report published this year noted that there are 2,263 free distribution sites that work through the Remediation Program. However, AGN found that the plan had many "significant flaws."

And there’s more

In the matter concerning the information system implemented at DSyETS, the Audit ruled that "it is neither useful nor sufficient to track and control the stock of the medications."


The Office in question publishes reports on Budget Management of AIDS, a study that addresses several indicators that are used to plan and make important decisions. However, AGN found that "the last period analyzed was 2006-2009."

Finally, the auditors noted that "registration procedures, monitoring, and program controls were not completed.” Therefore, were "unable to assess the effectiveness of the agency," also, "the data presented to the Budget Evaluation Directorate of the Ministry of Finance lacks sufficient, as well as the necessary, supporting documentation."

The Department had too many loose ends. In 2010 they earned a total of just over $251 million, considering they are primarily responsible for resources and medications of every AIDS patient in Argentina.