People with Disabilities and Rare Diseases Continue to Face Structural Inequity in Mexico

People with disabilities and rare diseases continue to face structural inequity in Mexico. The discussion on the inclusion of people with disabilities in Mexico — a group that amounts to 8.8 million, composed of 46.5% men and 53.5% women, according to INEGI figures — continues to be a structural challenge that demands sustained actions and social co-responsibility. Dr. Juana Inés Navarrete reiterated that care for these conditions cannot depend on the place of residence or the circumstantial availability of services, but on comprehensive public policies that ensure timely diagnoses, accessible therapies, and effective services at all levels of the health system. The commemoration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, established by the UN General Assembly in 1992, reminds us that people with disabilities in Mexico and the world continue to face physical, social, and attitudinal barriers. In 2018, the amendment to Article 4 of the General Law for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities recognized short stature as a disability, a regulatory change that set a precedent. This statement is framed in the commemoration of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, celebrated every December 3, whose theme for 2025—established by the United Nations (UN)—highlights the need to foster inclusive societies to drive social progress. In this context, people living with rare diseases (RD) face a web of adversities that goes beyond their medical conditions. Problems of mobility, diagnostic limitations, lack of access to specialized services, and social rejection continue to deepen inequality. This date aims to make these inequalities visible and promote joint actions—public and private—aimed at guaranteeing accessible environments, adequate medical care, and equitable opportunities. Despite regulatory advances and visibility, these groups continue to face structural barriers that compromise their right to fully participate in community life. An example of this struggle is the activism of Mariana Ramírez Duarte, who lives with achondroplasia —the most frequent form of disproportionate short stature— and advocates for the rights of people with disabilities. Her work focuses on demonstrating that disability does not originate exclusively in individual conditions, but in the persistence of social obstacles that limit the exercise of autonomy and dignity. In recent years, the country has registered some progress. Among those requiring special attention are people with RD, those of short stature, and those living with motor limitations, all subject to a system that still needs profound transformations to ensure their full social participation. Dr. Juana Inés Navarrete Martínez, coordinator of Genetics at the Faculty of Medicine of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), emphasized that this inclusion should not be limited to symbolic expressions, but should be integrated as a shared obligation among citizenship, institutions, and the public and private sectors. This is complemented by the implementation of the Universal Step in seven federal entities —Coahuila, Nayarit, Sinaloa, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Querétaro, and Jalisco—, with the expectation that its adoption will extend nationwide to favor accessibility in public and private spaces. However, in the field of RD, the gaps remain deep. In Mexico, most of these conditions remain undiagnosed or are diagnosed late, which generates significant inequities. For those living with MPS, the lack of specialized hospitals in their region of origin and clinical ignorance continue to represent significant obstacles. Among these populations are people of short stature and those living with mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS), a group of hereditary metabolic disorders characterized by cellular failures in the digestion of complex sugars.