In Bolivia, strikes and blockades continue in the administrative capital, La Paz. Protesters continue to demand solutions to the economic crisis and are increasingly calling for the resignation of center-right President Rodrigo Paz. After 10 days of blockades, hospitals in the capital are beginning to run out of medical oxygen.

Thousands of miners paralyzed the center of La Paz, Bolivia's administrative capital, on Thursday, May 14, 2026, and clashed with police during a demonstration demanding the resignation of center-right President Rodrigo Paz. The government continues to face a wave of protests from various sectors—workers, farmers, teachers, transportation employees, and indigenous groups—with demands ranging from wage increases to opposition to the privatization of state-owned enterprises.

But after ten days of blockades, the consequences are numerous, particularly for hospitals, reports our correspondent in La Paz, Nils Sabin. Gonzalo Morales, president of the chamber of industry, warns of an increasingly critical situation. "We have trucks loaded with food that are stopped, people waiting for medication to reach them as quickly as possible, and some hospitals are worried about their oxygen supply," he explains.

Roads blocked and tanker trucks at a standstill

Hospitals in the capital had oxygen reserves until midweek, but supplies are halted by the blockades. "We have four tanker trucks out of service; they are supposed to supply 12 hospitals in the city of La Paz and four hospitals in El Alto," explains Health Minister Marcela Flores.

In total, some forty tons of oxygen are reportedly stuck several dozen kilometers from the capital. MP Cecilia Vargas, a surgeon by profession, warns of the consequences of a prolonged shortage: "This affects a large number of surgical procedures; we're also talking about critically ill patients in intensive care, and children and babies in neonatal units, so the situation is very complex."

So far, no deaths related to lack of oxygen have been reported. But according to the government, two women died in the La Paz region because rescuers were unable to reach them in time due to roadblocks.

The government announced the establishment of an air bridge to supply hospitals with oxygen, without specifying what quantities would be delivered, or from when.

Almost all roads leading to La Paz remained blocked by protesters on Thursday. The Bolivian road administration reported at least 24 blockades in the department of La Paz.