Health Care

The government believes that medical services should be delivered to all people equally and free of charge.

Brazilian health care is a combination of national, state, and municipal level funding and legislation. The government believes that medical services should be delivered to all people equally and free of charge. All health services in Brazil are monitored by the United Health Service, which is, at most times, efficient at repaying claims. Usually they are able to repay around 90 percent of primary care, and close to 75 percent of secondary care. Primary care includes GP visits, emergency care, and dental visits. Secondary care, on the other hand, refers to treatments like specialist visits, inpatient hospital stays, and many surgeries.

However, because of the high numbers of people who benefit from these services and also because of a lack of funding for the United Health Service, medical service is often delayed; there are long lines for many non-emergency procedures. Emergency care can usually be carried out in a timely fashion, but all inpatient procedures and elective surgeries often have long wait lists. Health care is available to all, but better and faster care is available to those who can afford to purchase private insurance; private insurance means that the patient does not have to file paperwork with the United Health Service and doctors get reimbursed immediately.

There are approximately 8,000 major hospitals located across Brazil. The best of these hospitals are located in urban areas on the well populated eastern coast. As one moves away from the coast and into more rural areas, hospitals become much less frequent and sometimes are not as well equipped with modern medical equipment.