Health must be recognized as the human right it is Héctor Javier Sánchez MD MS : senior researcher, Department of Society, Culture and Health El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR), Chiapas, Mexico

Dr. Héctor Javier Sánchez specializes in public health and research methodology and holds a master's degree in epidemiology. He is a senior researcher in the Society, Culture and Health Department at El Colegio de la Frontera Sur, Mexico. The Colegio is a public research institution concentrating on environmental, economic and social issues related to a sustainable future for Mexico's southern border area, and belongs to the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT). In Chiapas State, the country's poorest region and home to many indigenous peoples, Dr Sánchez has carried out studies on TB, poverty and health, domestic violence, human rights, maternal-child health and the effect of agrochemicals on human health. He has been a member of the National System of Researchers since 2000, belongs to the Health Research Group for Africa and Latin America (GRAAL), and is technical secretary of the Latin American Forum of Health Research Ethics Committee (FLACEIS). MEDICC Review interviewed Dr Sánchez by e-mail on COVID-19 and its impact on Chiapas, indigenous populations and Mexico's health system.