Brazil's Public Healthcare System - A System in Crisis - Brazil forum

Brazil's Public Healthcare System - A System in Crisis

11272POSTS

14 years ago

SUS - Sistema Unica de Sa煤de is a system that has long been in crisis. When such vast sums of money have been pumped into the system one might ask, why? In most cases the funds and projects are mismanaged in the extreme.

You needn't look too far to find a hospital wing, or entire facility, that has been constructed and fully equipped and sits unused for various (political) reasons. They are everywhere in the country. The very facitlities that the public has paid for and so desparately is in need of sit idle everywhere.

In many cases here in Brazil one government administration begins construction on a much needed medical facility, be it a hospital, public health clinic (UBS - Unidade B谩sico de Sa煤de) or a new hospital wing. Lo and behold along comes an election year and a new administration is voted into office... one of the first things that they usually do is suspend and abandon the projects of the previous administration in order not to lend credance to their accomplishments while in office. Sad, but true. They [the politicians] couldn't care less how this effects the general public since they all have private healthcare at the expense of the taxpayer.

In other cases much needed facilities go unused simply because no funding is forthcoming for their operation once completed. Also in many cases money is not invested in maintenance of existing facilities and they fall into an alarming state of disrepair and in most cases are unusable.

Until such time as it becomes a criminal offense to suspend and abandon such projects as hospitals, schools, highways, etc., once construction has begun the Brazilian people will continue to suffer from this absurd practice.

What happened from the billions of Reais that were collected in CPMF which was brought in to fund healthcare? Who knows? Recently the Brazilian taxpayers narrowly escaped a similar new tax under a different name which would probably been equally as ineffective. The Brazilian people deserve so much more than they are getting from their government... sad.

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ixke Member

21POSTS

14 years ago

On the other hand ...

I am originally from Belgium and living in Bahia for many years now.
The system may not be perfect but is accessible for anybody without having to pay 1 centavo ...
In Belgium one would never think even 1 second to get something for free from the (public) healthcare system.
Just that you all know that maybe the SUS has it limits but also it has positive sides ;-)

Greetings

Ixke

James ViP

11272POSTS

14 years ago

Ixke,

Accessible to everyone? Truly you must be joking. As you so eloquently put it they don't have to pay a single centavo... I can't argue that point. They are however paying with something much more valuable - THEIR LIVES and those of their children.

Try telling that to he thousands of people in this country who die each year after of hours on end of waiting in Emergency Wards to be seen by a doctor, or waiting for hours for SAMU (ambulance) to arrive. Tell it also to the children and babies killed by incompetence by having liquid Vaseline or mother's milk injected into their veins, or have fingers, toes and other body parts accidentally amputated. If you were well treated in Bahia it is simply because you are a foreigner to be sure. I also lived in Bahia and in 3 other states and know first hand how pathetic the healthcare system really is here in Brazil.

ixke Member

21POSTS

14 years ago

@ wjwoodward

I am sorry woodward, in no way I was trying to offend you my friend ;-)
I was just speaking about my experiences here in Salvador AND the Rec么ncavo, and although those experiences might not be perfect I have less to no reason for (real) complain.

But maybe it would be worth to hold a second on this thought : the country is huge and still develloping (in a lot of matters), the way to go is loooong AND rest assured many other countries have similar problems, just think about healthcare in the USA for example ...

Greetingz

James ViP

11272POSTS

14 years ago

I'm not the least bit offended by your statements. You are expressing your own opinions which have been based upon your personal experiences. This is a right nobody can deny you.

I am however offended by the pure lack of respect the Brazilian government has for the Brazilian people. This country is the largest economy in South America and the eight largest in the world. The tax revenues are astonishing and in a country that even created a special tax (the now defunct CPMF) supposedly dedicated to the healthcare system not one penny of it found its way to the public in terms of services.

I too have had some good experiences with the healthcare system here, but it is clear that as a foreigner I am being treated differently than those beside me in most cases. I have also had some bad experiences. I am sure you must agree with me, for a country which collects billions of reais per year in tax revenues precious little is devoted to either the healthcare or educational systems. Salaries for politicians, on the other hand, do not suffer the same fate.

James ViP

11272POSTS

14 years ago

Hi Ixke,

I agree, the USA has a healthcare system that is geared to the "haves" and to the "have nots" only. The very rich, those who work for companies with excellent private healthcare plans as part of their benefit packages and those who receive public assistance get great care. The vast majority of the middle class either end up paying exorbitant rates for their own health plans or go without.

I was fortunate to spend most of my life in Canada, a country noted throughout the world for excellence in healthcare and a Public Healthcare Plan that should be a model for the whole world. In Canada private plans exist only to provide supplementary care, over and above the coverage offered by the various provincial plans - things such as homecare, medical equipment, dental coverage, prescription drugs, etc. This is why I constantly wonder why it is that when a country with a population of聽 around 30 million in population can generate sufficient tax revenues to provide such exceptional healthcare, by contrast Brazil with tax revenues that make Canada's look like a raindrop in the ocean cannot provide services that are even more exceptional to its citizens. Like with everything else the Brazilian government seems to be in the pocket of big business and lets the private healthcare insurers call all the shots.