The Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, announced on Friday at a press conference following the Council of Ministers’ meeting, several approved measures in the healthcare sector. These include the establishment of regional emergency services, a Fraud Combating Commission in the National Health Service (SNS) coordinated by the PJ, regulations for medical service providers, and a new system for accessing consultations and surgeries.
Details of the new measures:
Establishment of Regional Emergency Services
The government has approved the legal framework for creating regional emergency services, aimed at centralizing general and specific external emergencies.
This framework, established by a decree-law, is implemented “only and exclusively” in instances where continuity of emergency services cannot be assured due to a lack of human resources, explained the Health Minister. It allows for the possible consolidation of two or more local health units (ULS) in a region to concentrate emergency services.
Ana Paula Martins indicated that the first regional emergency unit is expected to be operational in the Setúbal Peninsula by early 2026, focusing on obstetrics and gynecology.
The three hospitals in that region—Setúbal, Barreiro, and Almada—will retain all scheduled maternity and delivery room activities. However, external emergencies will be centralized at the Hospital Garcia de Orta. This decision in the Setúbal Peninsula is based on a technical study suggesting that the Hospital of Setúbal, which will not handle open emergencies, will receive emergencies referred by INEM.
According to the minister, “some particular aspects” of this legal framework for regional emergency centralization are still under negotiation with the unions.
Fraud Combating Commission in the National Health Service
Another approved measure was the creation of a Fraud Combating Commission in the National Health Service (CCFSNS), aiming to save approximately 800 million euros, with collaboration from the Polícia Judiciária (PJ) and the Public Prosecutor’s Office (PGR), among other entities.
“We are talking about an estimated 3% to 5% fraud rate in the National Health System, specifically in the SNS, which could potentially reach around 800 million euros during this period,” stated Ana Paula Martins, adding that the commission will be “coordinated by the Polícia Judiciária.”
“It is a dedicated unit comprising elements from the Health Activities Inspection-General, the Ministry of Health’s Shared Services, the Central Health System Administration, and the National Pharmacy and Medicines Institute (Infarmed),” she added.
The government justified the establishment of this body as necessary to “ensure public funds are not misused, affecting all citizens negatively.”
Regulation to Discipline Service Provider Physicians
The regulation of medical work through service provision was also approved, aiming to standardize payments to these healthcare professionals and establish a system of incompatibilities.
According to the minister, this measure intends to “minimize disparities between doctors contracted by the SNS, pursuing their careers there, and those working as service providers.” The goal is to “standardize,” via a pricing schedule, the hourly pay for provider doctors, which in certain cases, “are unsustainable,” causing “significant dysfunctions throughout the country,” explained Ana Paula Martins.
The new framework also outlines incompatibilities, defining which doctors can provide services to the SNS, delivering a clear signal that service providers can be employed, but only where there is a genuine need due to a lack of SNS human resources.
New System for Accessing Consultations and Surgeries
The government has also approved the development of a new system for accessing consultations and surgeries, enabling patients to track their position on the waiting list and choose the hospital for treatment.
The National Consultation and Surgery Access System (SINACC) will replace the current Integrated Surgical Registry Management System (SIGIC), which was established in 2004.
“When a doctor proposes surgery to me, I have the right to know my position on the waitlist nationwide,” noted Ana Paula Martins.
